Pokémon Generations Online
by The Neverending Meep
Summary: The newest Pokémon game released is an innovation unlike anything seen before – a massive real world simulation that whisks the players into virtual reality. But when things rapidly become dangerous, the players are left with one option: beat the game, or die trying.
1. Prologue

The frigid winds cackled throughout the darkness as a car's headlights crested over the horizon. With a pained screech from the tyres, it caked itself in mud, and turned the ground beneath it to slush. A flurry of misty breath and bedhead burst out of the machine with a briefcase in hand, and slammed the door shut before stashing his keys haphazardly in his pocket. Holding the briefcase over his head for a vain attempt at protection from the elements, the man splashed across the saturated ground towards the front door. It was a large house, by even generous standards, and a fancy, if a bit haughty sounding doorbell that he pedalled at impatiently. "Open up, dammit…"

With the winds howling at his expense, he wondered what he was even doing out here, dragged from his warm bed at three in the AM at the boss' orders. Even in this limited light, he could tell that the building had been neglected, with the weeds beginning to take over the garden, and what looked like a fresh crack in the window. _Has he fired ANOTHER maid_ , the man thought, groaning internally. Every time a maid was 'fired' i.e. she had walked out after he'd gotten a little too 'handsy', hiring a new one only got harder. After all, this was a small town. Word spread quickly.

After what seemed like an eon, the buzzer on the door blared, its high pitched squawk not unlike that of a startled magpie. Wasting little time, the man bundled himself in and banged the mahogany door shut, locking the horrible weather behind him. He straightened his business suit in an attempt to iron out the creases and squinted at his phone;

3:24.

And buried his face in his palm.

"Oh man, he's gonna kill me…" The employee groaned, smoothing his hair down and ascending a spiral set of stairs lit only by the bare glow of outside. With every echoing footstep, the young man's bewilderment grew. What in the world was so important that it couldn't wait until morning?

Shaking dust from surfaces with each step he took, the sheer level of neglect astonished him. Up another flight of stairs and down a murky hallway, he became keenly aware the place was so dusty that not even the paintings of his boss' ancestors on the walls could watch him. Thankfully only one set of eyes fell on another door - this one oak - he gave the firmest knock his quivering hands could offer, shifted awkwardly, and waited. Why did it have to be the room at the end of the hallway and up all the stairs...?

"Come in, Johnson."

The dutiful employee gulped down his anxiety. He twisted the door handle open and was immediately met with a blast of warmth. The air, now thick with heat and blended in with the pungent stench of decay, caused his senses to clog unpleasantly.

"You… you wanted to see me, sir?"

The door clicked shut. Johnson stood at the room's periphery, turning a blind eye to the state of this… _lair_ his boss had entombed himself in.

"Yes, Johnson. I certainly do," came the old man's haggard voice once again. Johnson shuffled at the edge of the room.

"Come closer, boy!" His boss snarled, provoking a flinch. Clawing at a glass of red wine, he said, "Would it not seem imprudent? To converse with someone so far away?"

"I… guess." Johnson murmured, and inched closer to the tall armchair at the other end of the room. Illuminated by only the glow of a computer screen, even the enormous, imposing shadow of the chair alone was enough to leave Johnson wishing he could just stay where he was.

The boss was a difficult man at the best of times, with his questionable behaviours and antiquated morals. Were the pay not handsome, Johnson would have looked elsewhere for employment years ago. And yet, as he tiptoed his way around food packets, broken bottles, discarded crockery and abandoned takeout, [User4] he surprised himself with the strength of his worry. The old man may have him terrified, but he at least cared about the geriatric's health. He had to. Without the 'creepy, spindly bastard' as his former wife used to call him, there'd be no paycheck.

"So uhh, I brought the briefcase, boss." Johnson mumbled, now within mere feet of his faceless employer. The computer still glared down, like he was standing under the gaze of a spotlight. "You had something important to discuss?"

"Important? What are you talking about, Johnson? I summoned you because you were already an hour late, boy!"

"But sir… it's three in the morning?"

"...is that a fact?"

Johnson's concerns just spiked up a notch. Had his boss been so wrapped up in… whatever he was doing, that he had lost track of time?

"I-irrespective of the time, sir…" Johnson searched for somewhere to place his briefcase, "I have the documents you were after. What do you want me to-"

"Burn them."

And Johnson was stopped cold. Of all the things that had surprised him tonight, this was by far the biggest shock. Running a hand through his hair, he took a moment to process the enormity of the old man's request;

 _Burn_ his life's endeavours?

But he had only just noticed the heaped trashcan, stuffed - with some level of aggression, he noted - with a lot more paperwork. Some balled up, some just crushed into the receptacle, the cover sheet on the top of the pile seemed purposefully placed, as if it were a reminder to the boss himself;

 _'Perceived stigma of multicultural amalgamation - a study'_

"Yes, burn all of that, too. Good work, Johnson."

"Err… may I ask why, boss?"

Grasping at a photo frame on the desk - about the only thing in the room not caked in dust - and running his long, slender fingers across the edge, he muttered, "...they mocked me, Johnson. My life's work, ridiculed…"

"I, umm…" Johnson stammered, beyond knowing what to say, "That's uh… I'm really sorry to hear that, boss. I-I…"

"Don't, Johnson. I didn't summon you here to pity me."

"I know, sir. But I-I should at least express my sympathies. After all, that work is your life. If someone were to take something like that from me, I-I don't know what I'd-"

"Spare me your frivolities, Johnson. I'll not hear about your broken family right now…"

Johnson's flinch went pointedly ignored, and the boss continued stroking the photo in his hands as if it were made of the finest crystal.

"After all, I have a little… request for you."

"Oh?" Johnson balked at his employer's wording, but kept a strong resolve, "anything, sir. What's troubling you?"

"Nothing, Johnson. I just have a little… wager I'd like to settle."

"Wager? Have you been gambling again, sir? You know that stuff will get you addic-"

"Pay attention, Johnson. I am about to show you something important."

"...sorry, sir. Please continue."

"My experiment, Johnson. It was disallowed. 'Inhumane', they called it."

"It was a bit… incongruous, sir." Johnson chose his words carefully. "I mean, how on earth would you even go about-"

"Putting it all together? Why, that was the easy part, Johnson; I've already done it."

As he tilted the screen with his skeletal hand, Johnson caught a hint of an expression he couldn't quite identify cross the old man's face. Some glimpse of a dark, twisted side even he had only heard about in rumours around the office. Daring to glance upon the screen, Johnson's fear quickly turned to bemusement, when he saw only jumbled letters, symbols, and numbers.

"Is it… some kinda code, sir?"

"Correct. It is my own world, Johnson. One where the silly rules of _this_ world cannot reach.

"And what do you plan on doing with it, sir?" Johnson asked, flipping open his phone to check the time, "…Four o'clock already?"

"Why, carry out the experiment, of course."

Johnson could hear his employer's crafty smile from behind the gnarled armchair. "Tell me, Johnson…" the chair swivelled around, "what are the kids into, nowadays? I presume it's not still the little blue hedgehog?"

"Well err, I'm not entirely sure, sir. I'm not a kid."

"What do I pay you for, if not research, Johnson?" His employer growled, pinching the bridge of his long, crooked nose.

"Umm, to manage your finances, sir."

"Oh, enough with the-" The boss sighed, glaring at his employee. "...wait, what is that?"

"What is… what?" Johnson asked, before his phone was snatched out of his hands.

"This little creature."

The boss' face once again showed a difficult expression as he flicked the little phone charm around with one finger. Dark eyes studied the trinket closely, "Do kids today like this, Johnson?"

"Well err, I suppose so, boss?" Johnson resisted the urge to shrug, because shrugging was apparently rude. "My daughter gave it to me, so it could match up with hers, and-"

"Oh, so there are _more_ of them?"

"Lots, sir? Hundreds, I believe."

"How interesting…" the boss muttered. A silhouette of his face glowing by the light of his computer screen, he grinned silently to himself,

"Johnson, do you suppose I could use these creatures to carry out our little experiment?"

" _Our_ , sir?"

"Yes, _our_. You are helping me with this, aren't you?

"Well I, um…"

"Just make it happen, Johnson. Whatever these little creature are, I want them. Oh, and one more thing."

"...yes, sir?"

To Johnson's surprise, the photo frame was pushed into his hands. "Make sure this one gets in, okay?"


	2. Grant and Caitlyn

"Alright, touch!"

"Bind…!"

"...engage!"

Sixteen bodies crashed into each other with the force of a small explosion. It was the last play of the morning, and the purpose was simple; push the other bastards back. An oval-shaped ball tumbled in from the side to be welcomed by a barrage of kicks, each attempting to scrape it out from the centre. The frantic scramble reduced the grass underfoot to dust but until either the ball was freed or the scrum collapsed, nothing would cease.

With one last burst of strength, the men in red heaved against their opponents in blue. The ball finally burst out of one end, to be instantly scooped up by the halfback. He stumbled, just momentarily, and hurled it behind him before any blue shirts could grab at it.

As the ball recycled back from player to player, the blue team's defences were stretched wide. They needed to create a gap to keep the ball advancing, and their confidence grew with every successful pass. So long as they kept control of the ball, and the game, they could do it. It was all just a matter of discipline.

The ball span left and right between the red shirts, fuelling the hope that a "fast and furious" play through would tire out their blue shirted opponents. Yet the blues were not so easily discouraged, and kept meeting the red offence with equal determination and powerful tackles, meriting just enough strength to hold off the red assault.

And then it happened.

A furious lunge to the legs of the red player in possession brought him down. He faltered and toppled over, bringing his attacker with him. But the young man's instincts held true, and knowing it was the only option to keep the momentum alive, he wrenched his upper body around and pot-passed it upwards to the nearest of his team members.

A red player's arms stretched out to catch the ball tumbling towards him, but from nowhere, a streak of blue intercepted and sprinted off in the opposite direction.

The scattering of spectators cheered, tension swelling like a balloon around the modest grounds. Blue number fifteen was a blur as he charged down the field, side-stepping a valiant, yet ultimately flawed tackle by Red twelve.

Arcing off towards a corner in an effort to evade another red challenger, the fullback lunged for the fabled try line at the end of the pitch. Arms ensnared around his waist, desperate to drag him into touch, but the corner was within his reach…

He was going to cross that line.

He was going to win this game!

Ball in one hand, he stretched his body out as far as it would allow. Pain splintered through his limbs, but blue number fifteen managed to smack the ball down onto the grass. In the same movement, he was floored, his body thudding into the dusty ground. The ball had touched the white painted grass, he _knew_ it had, yet he still could not fight off a rise of anxiety. Had the ball been safely in position before, or _after_ , his body was wrenched into the purgatory known as 'touch'?

It was the referee's decision. With the blues down 22-18, and no time left on the clock, the weight of the impending judgement felt heavier than any onslaught of enemy players.

"What do you reckon?" The referee muttered to the touch judge, who grimaced back. Blue number fifteen squashed the ball firmly into the white painted grass, as if keeping it there would somehow help his case. He was well aware that one of his legs, and possibly an elbow, had however been forced into touch. But there was always a dim hope, right?

But Blue number fifteen didn't like the look on the referee's face.

"Sorry Grant," the referee grimaced. "Can't allow this one, mate."

Three shrill blasts escaped the referee's whistle, and polite applause escaped the smattering of watchers. It was over. It was bloody over.

"...bugger." He groaned, having come _so_ close to victory. Pushing himself off the grass, he was greeted by a hand in a red jersey.

"Almost." His opponent grinned, helping him back to his feet.

"You lucky bastard." Grant shoved his red counterpart playfully.

"I'm not the bastard. It's your bloody feet, ya drongo!"

"Well these bloody feet'll be kicking you." His accent lilted, and he chased his opposite number across the field towards the changing rooms. "Oi! Get back here and lemme punch ya!" Grant chuckled, pursuing his exhausted counterpart across the pitch. He was forced to stumble to a halt however, when met with an unexpected sight.

"Huh? Izzy? That you?"

A young girl span around in reaction to his voice. "Awha?"

"Hey, there! You doing okay?" Grant asked of her. Seeming not to recognise him immediately, she widened her eyes in surprise.

"Umm… Grant?"

"Heyyy, you remembered!" He smiled, the wave of relief visibly washing over him. "So you read your diary this morning?"

He wanted to approach her, but forced himself not to. She could be… _unstable_ sometimes, as the doctor so candidly told him.

"Mhmm!" Izzy answered him with a timid nod, "I-I… I read it all."

"Already?" Grant was stunned. "Wow. You're getting quick. Do you have any questions?"

"Umm…" She mumbled, her wide eyes glancing up at his towering figure. "D-did-"

"-I mind doing this all the time?" Grant 'finished' her question for her, obliviously. "Nah, of course not! Anything to help you, sis!"

"N-no, sorry." Izzy shook her head. "D-did you win your game?"

"Ohhh…" Grant couldn't help but chuckle. "Nah, sadly we lost it. Really close one, though."

"Aww, that's a shame." Izzy offered a tiny smile. "I guess I'll have to throw these away, then."

Only now did Grant notice the basket in her arms. Complete with the little chequered picnic blanket and everything, the sight was almost like something out of a fairy tale.

"Are those…?" He gasped, his eyes bulging.

"Ayup!" A rare hint of confidence crept into the young girl's voice. "I made cupcakes! They're n-not very good, and I burned them a little, but… chocolate?"

Grant suddenly began hopping on the spot, "Ooh, ooh ooh! M-may I?"

"O-of course!" She smiled, removing the cloth from her basket and unveiling a steady thirty cupcakes to the world.

"Sweet!" Grant cried, grabbing at least three cupcakes with little hesitation. "HEY GUYS, CUPCAKES."

"BLOODY YES!"

It was amazing the effect free food had on a team of exhausted and muddy rugby players. The siblings were swarmed within moments by a bunch of the politest six-foot tall, built-like-a-tank young men in existence.

"Oh wow, these are great!"

" _Mean_ cupcakes, Isabelle!"

"You should sell these! Seriously!"

"W-well, umm…" Isabelle was flattered, even going so far as to blush under the weight of all these compliments. "Th-thank-"

And as quickly as the mob had arrived, they'd disappeared again, leaving Isabelle with one and a half cupcakes remaining, and an equally stunned brother.

"…oh. They're gone."

"I'd take it as a compliment, Izz." Grant chuckled. "They're off the field, so their brains have stopped working."

"I suppose…" Isabelle forced a smile. "Oh! That reminds me! A thing came for you!"

"Huh? A thing for me?"

Grant frowned. He rarely had the funds to afford anything that wasn't either rent or food, and what little money he did keep spare went to bolstering whatever cute and fluffy obsessions Isabelle was cycling through. And he hadn't ordered her anything recently... had he?

Izzy handed him over a slightly battered parcel. The brown packing paper was sporting a bright red ream of tape around one end, suggesting it had been opened at the airport. Obviously from another country. And he almost never had the funds to import something, least of all a recollection of _doing_ it.

"International?" He muttered to himself as he turned the package over a few times. But curiosity was a different beast to caution, and he found himself tearing off the tape without a second thought. Inside he found what appeared to be a watch, of all things. The papers were instantly discarded into the nearest waste bin.

"Umm… shouldn't you read those?" Isabella asked, her concern perfectly reasonable.

"Ehh, it's only a watch, Izz. I'll be fine." Grant 'justified' his actions, promptly adjusting the strap on the watch so it fit around his wrist. "See? Nothing wrong with it."

"B-but what if it has weird functions or something?"

"There's buttons on the side here. I'll figure it out." Grant clapped a heavy hand on his sister's shoulder. "Don't you worry, Izzy Bee. Blokes have been figuring things out without manuals for thousands of years. It's how we function."

"But what if you break it?"

"Then I lose a free watch. I'm not all that keen on the colour, so it's no worries there."

"I guess…"

Isabelle cast a weary smile at her brother's overconfidence, but this wasn't something she was exactly a stranger to. A lack of money often required him to undertake DIY tasks himself, and the results were usually… rustic, to say the least.

Not once had he ever read a manual, though. That was true at least. Through his usual methods of shouting, 'experimenting', injuring himself, and shouting some more, her brother would always pull through.

And sure enough…

'Beep beep beep!'

"Heh. See? No instructions needed." Grant smirked to himself. Clenching the fist of his left arm, his newly acquired wristwatch shone in the morning sunlight.

"Alright, I guess I'd better go get changed or something." He said, bringing his little sister in close for a hug. "I'll be right out in a few moments, okay Izz? Don't you run off without me!"

"Okeydokey!" Isabelle smiled warmly. Grant gave her a half a wave on his way back to the changing rooms, and the watch on his arm continued to bleep at him.

* * *

A bright yellow umbrella fluttered into shape as she stepped outside, its cartoon lion protecting her from the dreary weather. Bundled up in a warm hoodie, the young redhead span around repeatedly, attempting to find good signal.

"...yes? That you, Da? A'right, I can hear ya now."

With an umbrella in one hand, her phone in the other, and a bag full of shopping hanging precariously from the umbrella's curved handle, the teenager strained to understand the crackling on the other end of the phone. Splishing through the puddles, the fierce weather was just another day for her.

"Huh? Of course I'm fine! What's gonna happen?"

"Look, I know ye worry Da, but it's just a bit of rain. If you come save me every time I get into trouble, I'll never be able to look after m'self, will I?"

"...oh, feck off, I did not sound like Mam!"

"Now just ye listen a moment, Caitlyn…" her father's voice was barely audible through the static, "I'm only thinkin' about what's best-"

"Look, I know ye want me te train under you, become your apprentice, all that shite," Caitlyn interrupted her dad's 'advice', "but I just don't see me usin' any of that stuff in the future. Sure, fixin' t'ings is cool, but-"

Kicking a pebble with her shoe, it skittered across the path, creating small ripples in its wake. The rain continued to pelt down, but her spirits were high; after all, work was over, and she was heading home, with the inviting prospect of a day off tomorrow. Despite the dark skies and shitey weather.

"...you got a what?" She muttered into the phone. Certain her ears were betraying her, she actually stopped in her tracks to make sure she heard properly.

"A Harley?! You're kiddin' me! A'right Da, I'll be right there! Don't touch it 'til I get home, got it?!"

Several loud noises crashed through the phone's receiver, forcing the teen to hold it at arm's length. Words soon followed.

"YA FECKIN' BEAUTY!"

"...Granda found the whiskey, didn't he?"

Shaking her head fondly, she sighed, "I'll see ya soon, Da," and hung up the phone. Sliding it shut and into the pocket of her apron, the young woman picked up her pace, walking with caution along the muddy verges. While her commute home was hardly a safe one, in darkness of night along single track roads, she couldn't just bug her father for help every time. He had enough on his plate with his mechanic work. So she made sure to stay out of trouble. But of course, he just worried more.

"If I can survive the crazy drivers here, I can handle anything." She muttered to herself, standing well back as one of said crazy drivers careered around a tight corner at breakneck speed, spattering mud over her trainers. Her lips tightened a little – these shoes cost two weeks' savings! – but then again, it was only a little mud. It would wash out.

The huge puddle that was just splashed at her by a passing car? Not so much. Those nice new shoes would likely need a bit more than just a wash now, but Caitlyn noticed with a sinking feeling that it was her shopping which took the full force of the splash.

"Ohh, ye bastard-" She groaned, stepping clear of the road and onto the lumpy, squishy grass, and peering into her shopping bag. Most of it was in packets or plastic, so her necessities – the bread, the milk, the cheese - were all fine. The potatoes were used to being a little damp, so they would survive too. The suspicious package she received earlier today wasn't so used to getting wet, however.

Addressed directly to her, the postie was lucky to catch her amidst her morning commute; otherwise it would've reached an empty house, and likely gone undelivered. Her neighbours were never sober enough to answer the door, so then it would've gone back to the post office, which was a good hour away on the bus, and the last thing she wanted to spend her one day off doing. Especially when her dad had a Harley they could both play around with. So maybe it wasn't so lucky after all, getting soaked and ruined like that.

The writing on it barely legible any more, she tore the soaked paper away, to make sure its contents were safe. Inside the packaging was a few sheets of paper and a… watch?

"The feck's this?" she grunted, snapping the device around her wrist and expecting it to do something. Unsurprisingly, it didn't.

She consulted the papers and attempted to decipher the rain stained letter. "Dear Miss Caitlyn Browne…" she read aloud to herself. "We're pleased t'inform ya that you've been chosen for – agh, it's hopeless. I can't read this."

Squelching along the muddy banks in her soaked trainers, she dropped the package and paperwork into the nearest rubbish thing, and instead resigned to what any self-respecting mechanic would do when confronted with a strange device; tinkering with it.

"How's it even…" Caitlyn muttered, prodding at various buttons along the device's side. Believing it to be a watch, she was hoping it would at least show her the time or light up or something. She huffed to herself. She would not allow herself to be outsmarted by a watch of all things. There hadn't been a piece of tech yet she couldn't figure out, and today was going to be no exception.

After pressing _both_ the top and bottom buttons simultaneously, the tiny screen lit up.

"HAH!" She cried in exultance, only to stop and squint as the watch began to beep softly. Against the backdrop of a faintly glowing blue light, she picked out a single sentence. "Log…in?" Caitlyn raised an eyebrow. "How am I gonna get a Wi-Fi signal out here?"

Beyond figuring out exactly how she'd even be able to enter details like a username or something into hardware this basic, the young woman held her arm up high, wondering if perhaps all it needed was a phone signal. Even that was a struggle, out in the 'arse end of nowhere', as the local dialect dictated, but it was a common sight to see someone holding their phone up high, in the chance that it would grasp at a gleam of signal.

More cars splashed past on the tiny roads, paying no heed to the girl on the muddy verge with her arm up high. Whether it was too dark to pay proper attention, or such an accepted sight that the locals were simply used to it, it didn't matter. What did matter was the chorus of little beeps escaping from her new 'watch'.

"Finally…!" Caitlyn clenched a fist, if not solely for the ability to lower her arm again. Yet, unfortunately for her, examining the watch once again still didn't yield the time. Instead, little words wriggled their way across the screen.

"RUN – PROGRAM?"


	3. Alex and Max

The room had not seen natural light for quite some time. The darkness was punctuated by bright flashes, the clacking of buttons on a keyboard, and the occasional growl of dissent.

"Ugh, noobs..."

Cursing at his computer wasn't unusual. Outside of school, most of his time was spent yelling at the thing. "Son of a-! Freakin' lag!"

"Honey...?" A voice peered around the door. "It'll be dinner soon."

All she got for a response was half a grunt.

With a sigh, the boy's mother turned tail and went back downstairs. He waited until he heard her footsteps dissolve back into the kitchen, then plugged himself back into his headphones and continued with his game. The fury he exerted on the buttons of the mouse did not quite reach his emotionless eyes, staring unblinking in the reflection of the screen.

"Die! Die! Die!" He cried, his eyes glassy as his pixilated opponents were riddled with imaginary bullets.

How many hours he had been here, he didn't know. Nor did he care. As far as he was concerned, this was his only plan for the rest of the weekend.

And yet his mother _persisted_ in bugging him.

"Max, sweetie?"

He slammed the PAUSE button and everything stood still in comical poses. "…what?"

"Your grampa's here."

The headphones were lowered. He said nothing else; swivelled around in his chair and allowed his feet to touch soft, carpeted floor for the first time in hours. Vision distorted from gaming, it took the young boy a few moments to regain his bearings. Away from the screen, he noticed the threat of a headache buzzing at the back of his skull.

He pushed past his mother and straight into the kitchen. There was a cookpot bubbling away on the stove. Max thought he could detect the rich, meaty tang of his mother's roast beef. Normally she only made this when she was trying to impress someone. It certainly wouldn't have been his grandfather, who sat at a slight stoop at the dining table. He never stood to any ceremonies.

And that was precisely why he and Max always got along so well.

"Grampa!" He cried, practically charging into the old man's loving embrace.

"Maxie, m'boy!" His Grampa laughed, ruffling the boy's blonde mess. "How are you, sonny?"

"Ehh, I'm okay I guess," Max sighed into his Grampa's shoulder. "Mom's yelling a lot..."

"Ohh, that's just her way, Maxie-boy. She just doesn't quite understand, does she?"

And the atmosphere in the room changed from a frosty one to warm and familial, as Max found himself enjoying the hug a lot more than even he expected. His Grampa chuckled, pointedly noticing his daughter-in-law glare at him from across the room. "Oh, and speaking of which..."

"Huh?" Maxie squinted as a brown package was pushed into his hands.

"The mailman doesn't seem to understand you either, Maxie." Grampa explained. "I know I haven't ordered anything recently." He said this with an enthusiastic guffaw that made even Max smile. "That means it must be for you, sonny!"

"For me...?" Max asked to no one, turning the package over in his hands. There was nothing special or indicative about it; his grandfather said that their addresses had been mistaken, yet there wasn't one on the package?

That notion stirred some confusion into the mix, but it was Max's curiosity that was bubbling over. Because it was _his_. Something _his_ grandfather had given to _him._

"What do you say to your Grampa?" His mother prompted from the doorway, exactly two plates of dinner in her hands.

"Thank you, Grampa." Max smiled, kissing his grandfather on the cheek. "I dunno what it is, but thanks for bringing it to me."

"Not a problem, Maxie." Grampa cackled, ruffling Max's hair once again. "Now, I suppose I should get going, huh? One can only take so much of your mother's death stare." He added, for Max's ears only.

His elderly joints cracking in protest, Grampa smiled. "Enjoy your gift, Maxie. Would you be up for another game of chess next week sometime? Though I suppose you'd rather be a Hero, hmm?"

With a fumble, Max placed his package onto the nearby dining table. "I'd love to, Grampa."

Grampa winked, "that's m'boy, Maxie. I'll organise a date with your mother sometime soon, for I fear I may turn to stone if I don't leave right now!"

Amidst his grandson's hearty cackling, the old man let himself out. No sooner had the door closed behind him, Max's mother stomped past. Two china plates clattered upon the tiny wooden table, and the familial warmth quickly froze over once again.

Max picked at his dinner slowly. She had piled his plate with enough food that it could have easily fed a man twice his age. And God help him if he didn't finish it. He shuddered, remembering far too many arguments that arose over far too many insignificant things.

He glanced at the little brown parcel whenever his mother had her eyes on her plate. Just what was in there, he wondered.

"Aren't you gonna show me what your Grampa brought you?"

Max's caught his mother's gaze for the first time in several hours.

"A-at the dinner table?" He stammered, confused.

"Well, if it's so important that he had to interrupt dinner to bring it over, then I suppose you can."

His mother's voice was heavy yet insistent, an unpleasant edge to words that should have been easy and conversational.

"Umm... okay."

He set his knife and fork down, his mother flinching at the series of chinks that came from her "good china", and Max fumbled with the brown package. He tore into the wrapping like it was a present at Christmas. Underneath the paper was a box. Inside that box was another box, this time much smaller. Was this some sort of trick, Max grumbled to himself, as he burned under his mother's glare. Eventually he got _that_ box open to reveal…

"A watch?" His Mom raised an eyebrow. Snatching the paperwork that came with it away from her son, she frowned. "This was so important it had to interrupt dinner?"

"Huh? Weird." Max said to himself. "I don't remember ordering this..."

"Have you been buying things online without my permission, Max?"

Max felt himself recoil slightly, yet he remained silent. Keeping one eye expertly trained on her son, his mother skimmed through the paperwork, muttering segments of it under her breath.

"It says here you've been chosen for some social experiment." She stated, her eyes bulging. "Just what have you been doing on that computer, Maximilian?"

"Nothing, Mom!" Max shied away, blushing furiously at the utterance of his full name.

"Then why have you been chosen for some seedy experiment?!" His mother raged, slapping the papers down beside him. Gravy spattered from her plate, and a fork was sent flying in her rage.

"I don't know, Mom!" Max cried, his genuine objection permeated with the prickle of tears. "I haven't heard of this thing!"

"Oh really?" His mother's lips were so thin they were barely visible. "Then care to explain how they know you love – huh? Pokémon? – you don't really like those games, do you?"

"N-no, Mom..." Max said truthfully. Pokémon? Was that what this thing was about? Those silly creature-raising games that were popular about a thousand years ago in the 90s? Before he was even born? "I've never played one of those games in my life." He added to further make his point.

"Then why would they...?" She muttered, flicking through the papers for some form of explanation. It wasn't arriving. "I'll be sure to contact these people, and inform them of their mistake, okay Max?"

Her voice was a lot airier now. Max just nodded in response, letting out a breath and relaxing against the back of his chair. He spied the watch still lying unclaimed on the kitchen table. A cool ice white with a square face, it reminded him vaguely of an old watch which used to belong to his father. He felt a burst of longing. A man's watch.

"Can I... keep the watch at least?"

"Well I don't see why not?" His mother rationalised, retrieving the fork she had flung earlier and resuming her meal. "It's their fault for not doing their research properly. I'll give this EmberNet a call tomorrow and get it all sorted out, alright?"

"Sure thing." Max gave a half-hearted response, as he snapped the watch's strap around his wrist and tightened it.

"Is that thing waterproof?" His Mom asked.

"Dunno. Why?"

"Well, you better take it off if it isn't. Cause how else are you going to wash the dishes?"

"You what?" Max was incredulous. Chores, _seriously_?

"Oh, it's one thing, Max. You need to grow up, and start taking responsibility for things around the house."

"Well yeah, but the dishes? C'mon, Mom..."

"Alright, we'll swap. I'll do the dishes, and you can vacuum, load the laundry, take out the trash, and feed Nibbles. Sound good?"

He was screwed either way. "…fine. I'll do the damn dishes."

He half-expected his mother to yell again. She never liked him cursing, even if it was only mild like "hell" or "damn". But instead, his mother laughed vigorously. "Great! I'll let you get on with it then."

Max felt what little cheer he had left evaporate outwards. He only wanted to finish his dinner and get back to his game, now he was lumbered with chores? Unfair. What did his mother do all day that he needed to pick up her slack?

"Gimme just a moment, Mom..." Max sighed, fiddling with the buttons on his watch as he stomped off towards the restroom. "How's this stupid thing work...?"

Stalling for time might have been counterproductive at best but Max saw it as a personal victory. Because he was defying his mother's silly rules, and that meant winning, even if it was only for another minute or two.

And winning was everything to Max. Gamer first, human second, as he often boasted. This whole real life thing was incredibly overrated, he thought with a sigh as he reluctantly started clearing the table.

* * *

The lazy winter sunshine had dyed the sky orange, making a charcoal silhouette of the city. In amongst the calm serenity, a young boy charged away from the protective shadow of his exasperated mother. Running along in clumsy ecstasy, the lad was driving his poor mother ragged. It had already been a long day of laundry, cleaning, and shopping. And now she had to chase her ball of hyperactivity down the road, while carrying three heavy bags? What little energy she had left was running out, and quickly.

"Ty! Slow down, honey!" Alex Laverne called, keeping up as best she could, but her boy just couldn't slow down. After all, dad was almost finished with work!

Continuing to pursue her son down the road, with the weight of a long day testing her, she hatched a plan; "Ty honey?! How 'bout you help mommy with a secret mission?"

"Seekamisshun?" Little Ty's curiosity was piqued. He shuffled to a halt just shy of the crossing and turned to face his mother, who had scarcely caught up to him.

"Y-yes! A secret mission just for you, Ty!"

Kneeling down to talk to her boy properly, Alex caught her breath, and placed her shopping bags onto the ground beside her. "You wanna hold onto daddy's present for me? It's super important?"

"Supaportant?" The young boy's eyes lit up. The grabby hands were already active, his mother thought with a smile. "Okay! Gimmegimme!" the boy insisted.

Alex excavated a brown package out of one shopping bag and handed it to her son. "You've gotta be real careful now, okay?"

"Present!" Ty was already ecstatic, hugging the package tight. "Whatizzit?"

"Well, umm…" Alex was flummoxed at her son's curiosity. She had no idea what was in the package either. Her husband had an insufferable habit of ordering whatever gizmos and gadgets caught his attention. He was worse than a child. "Why don't we let Dad find out, yeah?"

"Aww…" Ty groaned, visibly deflating.

"Just a little longer, okay?" She smiled, stroking her son's cheek.

"Okayyy…" he mumbled, holding the package tight and toddling along with his mother. The red light finally turned green, and mother and son stepped out onto the crossing.

"Stay with me, sweetie." Alex fished around for her son's hand, only to be interrupted by the sound of ripping paper.

"It broked!"

Ty didn't even try to cover for himself, watching with a strict disinterest as lots of important looking papers blew away with the wind.

"Ohh, Ty...!" Alex moaned. She scooped both him and the package up in one arm, and was forced to make a mad dash from one side of the street to the safety of the other. "What did I say about the package?"

"…for Dad?" came the bashful reply.

"That's riiiight. And why did you open it?"

"I-it was broked."

"Are you lying to me, Ty?"

"No! Really broked!"

Alex smirked. All she needed was to look her son in the eye to know that the package wasn't really 'broked'.

"What's your dad gonna say when he finds out you broke it?"

"Broked…" Ty mumbled to himself; Alex could almost see the cogs turning.

"…dad give it to me?!"

"Ohh, dear…" Now clear of the road, Alex set her son back on his feet. Relieving him of the parcel, she surveyed the damage. All that was left was what seemed to be a wristwatch, wrapped in a plastic casing.

"Well, so much for a surprise." She rolled her eyes. She removed the wristwatch – a vibrant green in colour – from its casing and tied it around Ty's wrist.

"Now you be extra careful!" Alex gave her son a serious look. "We can still surprise your dad with it, okay? Just be sneaky."

"Sneaky?" Ty sounded confused. Maybe the word was new to him. "…ninja sneaky?"

Alex did a double-take at her son, for even knowing what a ninja was in the first place. "Y-yes. Now you be a good ninja, and make sure to surprise dad after work, alright?"

"Oka-!" Ty begun, about to shout in his usual excitement. However, realisation kicked in, and instead the young boy just narrowed his eyes and glanced up at his mother, offering the woman a curt nod.

Alex buried her head in one hand, but couldn't resist a grin. Torn between amused and mortified, she simply watched as her excitable young boy darted behind benches, trees, streetlamps, and anything else that would act as cover. He would occasionally 'speak' into his new watch as if it was a walkie talkie, and Alex immediately knew who to blame for this behaviour.

"Alright Mr Ninja, you can come outta hiding now!"

"Ninja-kun!" Ty yelled back, glancing at his mother from behind the bush he was 'hiding' in. Ty spoke to his watch again, only for it to light up and start making noises. "Uh oh…"

"Ty honey? Is something wrong?" Alex's voice spiked up a notch.

"It did a thing!" Ty yelled back, bursting from cover and charging over to his Mom. "Maked light!"

"Light?" Her anxiety simmered just a little. "Like, the screen lit up?"

"Nooo! Lots of light!"

Ty latched onto his mother's leg, and she didn't even have time to kneel down and comfort him before the light grew brighter. An impossibly bright turquoise emanated from the watch on Ty's wrist, before engulfing the pair…

And they were gone.


	4. Press Start

The first thing Alex recalled was the light. Painfully bright, all-encompassing, engulfing herself and her tiny son until it threatened to leave nothing of them remaining. Her only tie to the present, her only protection from disappearing entirely, was the feeling of her boy clutching desperately onto her leg.

It was just blue. Filling every corner of her sight, every pore of her skin, and so bright not even scrunching her eyes shut against the onslaught would dull it.

For one mad, dizzying moment, she felt her entire existence waver. Like everything she was had been reduced to a mere acknowledgement. She felt no physical body, her senses were deadened and useless, and she could not process anything aside from fear.

Desperately, she sought other things than just the light. The clench of her son's fingers. The feeling of solid ground underneath her shaking feet. _Anything_ she could keep a hold of. Then, an unseasonal wind picked up, slicing against her exposed skin. Doubt shouldered its way in. But was this just her mind playing tricks?

 _What was going on?!_

Alex's panic spiked. She fought to order her frightened thoughts. What had happened? From what little she could remember, her son had unwrapped some kind of watch meant for her husband, and it had exploded in a show of bright, blue light.

The same light they were still lost within.

How can a _watch_ do this, she wondered in bewilderment.

And then the first drop of humanity permeated her existence for what felt like hours: a single raindrop.

Icy cold and sudden, each raindrop bled into the next and refreshed her skin. Despite everything. Alex felt calm and soothed by the familiar embrace. The bright blue light dissipated at last and Alex's senses re-calibrated, one by one. Smell came first; the unmistakable salty tang of the sea. Then she could taste its acrid kiss on her dry lips. Finally, her vision returned in blotches, like your eyes adjusting from too long at staring at the sun. The details were too much – instead she focused on the vibrant hues of greens, blues and browns.

And suddenly, everything made a horrible and terrifying sense.

"…this ain't New Orleans."

Ty murmured into his mother's leg and it was enough to inspire her to action. Forget everything else, getting Ty somewhere safe was the only thing she could allow herself to think about it. Abandoning her grocery bags, she pulled Ty to her chest, and started to run. To where, she didn't know. How could she? But the only instinct she knew demanded to be listened to. Run. Get help. Get _answers_.

"Hello?!" The fear trailed in her voice, lost to the steep, grassy hills she was struggling through.

She glanced around, hoping for some sort of clue as to where they were. A trail. A road. Even a sign of some sort. There was nothing. Just endless green surrounding her on all sides. Enormous pine trees vaulted upwards from the slippery, mossy ground. Gangs of rocks encircled a murky stream, gurgling and spluttering ominously. Buildings stood in the distance, scars encroached against the horizon.

They were her only chance and she pushed herself forward. As she staggered, arms and legs aching against the uphill struggle and Ty a dead weight, she wrestled with the idea of simply giving up, sinking into the ground and remaining there. Then Ty would whisper "Mama", a cry so tiny and pathetic she almost didn't hear him. But somehow, it gave her the strength to take the next step. And another. And _finally_ , she mounted that hill.

Eventually, she stumbled into what she had initially thought was a tiny settlement. A breath escaped her in awe as she looked around. The buildings here looked like they could house dozens, maybe even _hundreds_ of people. But it looked like no city or town Alex had ever seen before.

Shifting her son to her hip, Alex began a shaky descent down the hill towards the town. There had to be people here. And people could provide her with some information. Probably.

"Hello…?" Alex called out to no one, wading through the knotty, rooted terrain that separated the towering pine trees. "Is there… anyone here?"

"Mama, scary…" Ty whimpered into her chest, and she made a vain attempt to calm him down with a reassuring "Sshhh, it'll be okay…"

An exploration into the gaggle of houses proved fruitless, with nothing and no one so much as stirring as she wandered around. Her overburdened mind continued to buzz, with infinite thoughts flitting around, and none of them managing to land.

"Is there anyone here…?!" Alex repeated, her breath catching in sharp gasps. She was exhausted now – Ty was wriggling around and wouldn't be stilled, her limbs were stiff and unresponsive and she felt the threat of tears in the corners of her eyes.

She staggered up the last few concrete steps and collapsed onto a wooden bench conveniently placed in the shade of a giant tree. She settled Ty next to her, sat back and finally allowed her exhaustion to take over. Fresh beads of sweat trickled from her pores and Alex felt her head tip back, and her eyes shutter close, almost against her own will.

"Hello?!"

Alex started so quickly that her neck cracked.

"Agh!" She grunted, and grasped at the sore joint. "H-hello?! Is… is someone there?!"

There was no reply, and Alex felt her whole body wilt with disappointment. Could she have imagined the voice, she wondered. Was the longing for another person really a strong enough impulse that her mind could've simply conjured the voice? And one with such a thick accent, no less? That didn't seem too likely...

But her strained senses were placated as the voice spoke again:

"Can you hear me?!"

Alex practically jumped from the bench. "Y-yes! I can hear you!"

Rubbing at her sore neck with one hand, and once again manipulating her boy around her waist with the other, Alex looked around in every direction possible. A mild surprise that in her fatigue she had managed to climb to the highest point in town: a vantage point right at the top of a daunting number of steps. Instinct was a funny thing. She hadn't planned to get up so high but her body had acted on its own to protect both her and her son.

Then she spotted it. A tiny figure in the distance, waving their arms at her.

"There is more of us! Over this way!" The person yelled, their deep voice carrying the distance. "We trying to get everyone together!"

"Alright! I'll be…" Alex began enthusiastically, before noticing the stairs she had to descend. "Right… there."

She placed her son back down for a moment, and stretched her complaining joints, feeling them creak like worn leather. "Ohh, Ty! We're not alone!"

"Morepeople?" Ty jabbered, before he was again scooped up by his mother, and the pair continued back down the punishing concrete staircase.

"Yes honey. More people. Lots more people!"

She could feel the blood pounding in her feet with each and every laboured step, however hope was the greatest motivation she had ever known. For the first time she was able to ignore the pain and soldier on, following the faint traces of both the voice and her memory.

She heard them before she saw them. An incoherent, deep rumbling she almost mistook for traffic at first. When she stumbled towards the group, which had positioned themselves in almost a perfect semicircle against one of the buildings, she was struck with the peculiar notion that she was likely the eldest of everyone there. While some of the gangly teenagers at least surpassed her in height, she was nearly certain that no one else there was over the age of twenty or so, forget close to her own.

She pushed the thought aside as a high-pitched voice rang over the others. "Alright, is that everyone? Th-the thing said that we needed everyone here, so…"

"How're we supposed to know?" Another voice countered, this one older sounding and gruff. "We dunno how many people there are in total, so how can we know if everyone's here?"

"Fair point…" the first voice conceded, "W-well, maybe we can just assume this is everyone?"

"Well, if that's the case…" The first voice spoke, which Alex had discovered belonged to a young girl, perhaps in her mid-teens. "H-hello, everyone. There's, uhh, there's this thing, a-and-"

"Just get on with it already!" A male voice hollered, spooking the girl further.

"Umm, w-well…" she stammered, visibly balking. Her accent was lilting and unfamiliar to Alex. "We're… supposed to activate this thing when we have everyone. S-so… should I do that?"

"Yes! Just get it over with!" The impatient onlooker yelled, and Alex narrowed her eyes at his candour. _Give the poor kid a chance_ , she muttered internally.

"O-okay then!" The girl up front chirped nervously, placing a small, silver device on the ground at her feet. She crouched down behind it, studying the strange thing with a fiercely creased frown. "Umm… how do I… make the thing work?"

"Maybe there's a button somewhere…" Another person nearby suggested, kneeling down next to her and actually offering assistance, instead of just complaining. A leader she was not, it seemed.

More sighs and groans of impatience rifled through the crowds but the two adolescents eventually managed to get the machine working, via a simple button on the bottom of the contraption.

It booted up with a slight whirr and the gaggle of teenagers gave it an increasing berth in accordance to a shrill crescendo of noise it emanated. Some raised their hands defensively, as if they were afraid the mystery device would explode. But to massive relief of many, Alex included, the only thing the contraption did was give off a vibrant bright light. Several people gasped and screamed, the memory of the similar light that brought them here still terrifyingly fresh in their minds. But Alex could not take her gaze from the light, which twisted and warped, shaping itself into a hologram resembling an elderly man. His posture was awful, his features were somehow both sharp and withered at the same time, and his narrow slits for eyes silently judged from behind overlarge glasses

"Greetings, all," the old man spoke at last, placing his hands behind his back. "I suppose you are wondering why you are here."

The small group of teenagers gravitated closer. Questions, verbal abuse and general incoherence were all hurled at the projection, all with absolutely no effect.

"I'll not beat about the bush, as I've not the time, and you will be needing to make the most of yours." The old man's projection continued. "All of you, and many others like you, have been carefully selected for a social experiment, conceived and designed by yours truly. And you are my… what was that phrase again, Johnson?! Ah yes, my _beta testers_!"

Murmurs of discontent rippled through the crowd.

"Now, this world I've created, consider it your own," The old man adjusted his glasses. "As long as you follow our rules, you may behave as you see fit, as it is all part of my experiment. Sufficient accommodation has been provided for you all, and provisions will be, for now at least, plentiful. With your given, single commonality, I wish you all the best of luck. For there is just one catch…" He paused, an irritatingly long time, as if for dramatic effect:

"You are all trapped here until you beat the game."

The hologram flickered a couple of times, as if it weren't quite finished, but then the projection dissipated in a flash, leaving the congregation of young people stunned.

"B-but what _are_ these rules?!" Someone yelled almost immediately, to yells and shouts of agreement. "He didn't mention any! How can we follow them if we don't know what they are?!"Another person suggested. "It could be all part of the guy's plan, after all."

"Yes, the wonderful plan to abduct dozens of people!" The first person retorted. "Just how does he think he can get away with this?!"

"U-um…" the young girl who started the projector attempted. "Fighting about it w-won't do-"

But her tiny voice was drowned out almost instantly by the sheer volume of complaints and frightened yelling. One girl to the left of the group had burst into noisy sobs and no-one was making any attempt to console her.

"I can't just agree to this weird experiment! I've got a life back home! School, family, friends!"

"And I was gonna ask her to the dance tomorrow…"

"They can't just take us away from our lives! How is this even possible anyway?!"

The chaos was ascending, and quickly. People were shouting over others, screaming at each other and crying with no hope of any resolution. Ty was crying into Alex's shoulder and she could barely even process how to comfort him when she didn't know how to comfort herself.

"Alright, QUIT IT!" A commanding voice bellowed above everyone else, somehow managing to silence every other errant shout and opinion. Perhaps it was something to do with the fact he was a good head higher than everyone else and waving two muscular arms to divert everyone's attention from their strained tempers.

"Now, we're not gonna get anywhere if all we do is shout at each other!" The deep voice continued to holler, his accent bouncing at the end of his sentence. "So let's cool things down, and talk to each other a moment eh?!"

He hadn't expected this level of silence. And now, with this sudden hush of voices, he felt as intimidated by them as they were by him.

"Okay…" He mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. "I-I reckon we could start by introducing ourselves."

No one else seemed enthusiastic to follow him up on this.

"…heh," an awkward chuckle escaped his lips. "Alright, I'll go first. G'day, I'm Grant, from Brisbane in Australia. I'm twenty three, and I'm a labourer. Who wants to go next?"

Grant lowered his hand, and saw exactly zero others volunteering information about themselves straight away.

"H-hello…?" The shy girl stammered, barely attracting attention. "M-my name is… Priya? I am from Bangalore in India, a-and I am fifteen. I am a student."

"Alright, good on ya!" Grant raised a genuine smile, encouraging the girl's efforts. "Who's next?"

And the floodgates opened.

"Y-yes, hello," a thick, almost unfriendly sounding accent replied. "I am Pshemislav, call me Shemmy. Am from Krakow, Poland. I am seventeen, am student also."

"Alexandra, twenty eight, New Orleans, US of A," Alex raised her arm. "I'm a full time mom. This little guy here," she lifted her boy Ty up to the crowds. "Is my son Ty. He's four."

"Yeaahhh!" Young Ty added his own voice to the situation, waving one arm to the crowd.

"I am Camila, I from… a Spain. I am ahh, nineteen, and I ahh," she made a shaking movement with her wrist, as if holding an invisible something. "I cook food?"

"Quite a wide variety we've got here…" Grant's eyebrows knotted together. As more and more people began to introduce themselves to the groups, with varying levels of fluency in the English language, it soon became very clear to him that the multicultural flavour of this congregation wasn't just a coincidence. Whatever this world's 'creator' had in mind, bringing people together from around the world was no accident.

Time passed quickly as each introduction passed into the next. Before Grant knew it, a whole half an hour had slipped away. He let out a quick breath and put his hands on his hips. "Okay." He glanced around the group for any unfamiliar faces. "I think that's everyone? Is there anyone who we don't know?"

The throngs of people glanced to each other and after a few moments, a few were singled out, isolated from the rest. Grant felt a twist of worry in his stomach. Not only hadn't these people said a single word since the introductions started, they looked thoroughly confused.

"I-is there a problem, guys?" Grant made the effort to approach the few personally. "Do you… not wanna talk?"

He was met with blank stares.

And more awkward silence blew through the area, before one eventually conceded…

 _"Je ne… parle pas Anglais_."

People were noticeably taken aback by the sudden issuance of a voice. One in a language that wasn't English. Several more bewildered expressions were exchanged between the group and Grant felt his heart sink somewhere to his boots. What were they going to do? His experience in languages stretched to the odd word, and even then, a few curse words weren't likely going to help anyone. It was then he felt a surge of annoyance. These poor people who didn't speak English were likely even more terrified than the rest of them. He clenched his fists. If this guy was gonna abduct people from all corners of the globe and chuck them all together, why didn't he at least make sure they could understand what was happening to them?

"How can we communicate with these people?" he fretted as several expectant eyes fell on him.

Then suddenly, someone pushed through the crowd.

 _"Parlez vous… Francais?"_

Alex had approached the boy with the blonde hair. Her French was hesitant and she stuttered, but the few basic words had caused the young man's eyes to light up. Instantly, he was gabbling back at her.

Alex seemed overwhelmed at the strength and speed of the young man's speech, but after a few moments of broken conversation, she turned back to the group.

"Alrigh', this boy here," Alex circled the wrist of one hand, finding her words. "His name is Michel, he is fourteen, and he is from Normandy, in France."

 _"Merci beaucoup!"_ Michel wrung Alex's hand in his gratitude.

Two more pairs of eyes now focused hopefully on her, but when they spoke, their languages were completely alien to her. She gulped and looked around at the others. "I'm sorry… I don't think I can help with these ones. Maybe they don't speak French either…?"

"Okay, okay, no worries…" Grant mused, a hand on his chin. "We can figure this. Someone here's gotta speak their languages. Or at least, something similar?"

Eventually, after much circling around and butchered speech, the last two mysteries were solved.

"This… Pedro. He is from Brazil," One tanned person was introduced to the crowds by another, the Spanish girl named Camila. "He, ahh, _veinti_ … twenty three, and he, ahh, drive _ambulancia_?"

"Ivan, he from Russia. Is nineteen." Shemmy the Pole announced brusquely. "He is comrade, from place call Sochi in Russia. Is… nice in summer."

 _"Da."_ The young man known as Ivan muttered, offering Shemmy a curt nod before disappearing back into the crowds.

"Right, that's two more. Great work, you two," Grant cheered, with some polite applause coming from the crowd. "Is-is that everyone?"

And as far as anyone could tell, nobody had been left out. Conversation had sprung up, albeit awkwardly, and the panicky atmosphere had been somewhat eased, replaced with the brisk professionalism of perhaps a staff meeting.

"Alright, next up…" Grant raised a hand to grab some attention. "The guy said that there was housing for us all. I'm gonna assume that these houses around us are those?"

Several pairs of eyes just blinked back at him. No response. Of course. He scolded himself for expecting otherwise.

"So uhh, yeah. I reckon we should each pick one?"

Once again he was met with silence. He rubbed his aching temples. These people sure weren't the sort he was used to. Why was everyone so shy? After a bit more probing, a few murmurs of agreement eventually slipped through.

"Don't all run off at once…" he sighed, deflating, "Well, we can figure out food and other things later. For now, let's just get settled in."

Grant waved his arms out as if to 'shoo' the crowds away. He felt like he was herding sheep as they eventually got the hint. Slowly, they filtered out towards flats of their choosing. Some made their decisions based purely on location, while others would pick based on their neighbours. After all, it was a lot more comforting if your neighbour at least understood your language.

Grant, he simply waited for other people to choose. He wasn't one to be swayed by aesthetics. Not really. Eventually, he decided on a flat sandwiched in between two others. It faced towards the sunset, meaning there wouldn't be any rude awakenings in the mornings. That was convenient at least.

He was less than comfortable at the discovery that there weren't locks on these doors, but then he reasoned; what did he have that was worth stealing?

As far as he was aware, the only things he possessed in this world were the clothes on his back, and the basic food items that had been provided for everyone by the game's creator. Was the lack of locks another part of this experiment, he wondered. Were they being trusted not to steal from others? Or was it a test to see how long it would take for them to resort to stealing?

Regardless, he didn't like the implications. He rummaged through the cupboards to learn exactly what he did own, his mind constantly buzzing with questions. Was there any kind of currency in this world? If so, how was it earned? What were they supposed to do for food when it inevitably ran out? And what was this one 'commonality' between them all?

That last one had him stumped. As far as he was aware, there weren't two people in this small group who were even from the same country. So how could they all possibly have something in common? He reasoned that this likely wasn't the only settlement in this 'world', as the old man's projection hinted, but where were they? How far away could they be? And was their situation exactly the same as theirs? It couldn't be a fair experiment otherwise.

He pinched his nose, and grimaced. He was even thinking like the madman who trapped him here, now…

After thoroughly studying the food staples in his cupboards and with nothing else to do, Grant began pacing between rooms, his stress levels already peaking. He didn't have time to be stuck in some alternate dimension thing! He had to get back home, and look after his sister Isabelle!

He couldn't be cooped up in this tiny box! Izzy needed him to look after her!

"Why am I here?!" Grant shouted to no one, clenching a fist and slamming it down on the pitiful bed. Digging his hands into his hair and tugging at the roots, he was both furious and embarrassed that the situation was already getting the better of him.

"Dammit!" He grunted, slamming down onto the bed and feeling the frame groan under his weight. He knew that it wasn't the bed's fault, or his own, or anyone's here, but something had to take the-

*Clank!*

A heavy sounding metallic thud derailed Grant's train of thought.

"What was that?" He spoke, his voice harsher than he would've liked. He glanced over the edge of the bed to find a large, red and white sphere, roughly the size of a tennis ball.

"Hang on, I recognise you…"

Heaving the deceptively heavy capsule from the ground, he rolled it around his palm, all the while taking a good, long look at it. Already sporting a scratch from where it crashed into the wooden floor, the ball felt like a lifetime's worth of nostalgia condensed into the palm of his hand.

With baited breath, Grant was ready to push the button on the centre of the capsule, until his nostalgia was torn open by the escape of one single, frenzied yell.

"WAAAAAH?!"


	5. Level Up

"WAAAAAH?!"

The terrified screech shook Grant right to his core. His heart lurched, his mouth ran dry and his palms broke out in a thin film of sweat. What was that?!

Forgetting everything else and charging out the door, Grant made huge strides down the wooden walkways to the source of the noise, where he found a woman – Alex? Was that her name? – cowering on the floor. With one hand clasped around her necklace, and the other clutching onto her young boy for dear life, she scrunched her eyes up, and muttered something furiously under her breath. A chant? A prayer, maybe?

A heavy, guttural roar escaped from the building in front of her. Grant's heart thumped against his ribcage. With careful footsteps, he approached the pair. But no amount of careful thought or anticipation could have prepared him for when he found the source of the noise.

Eight foot tall, weighing in at a minimum of seventy, eighty kilos, and hilariously stuck in the doorway, the monster locked eyes with Grant.

To his surprise, the look in its eyes didn't seem murderous. If anything, he could've sworn the beast was merely confused.

"Oh, wow…" He found himself chuckling. "You got yourself a good one! A Kangaskhan?!"

"A Kanga…what?" Alex whimpered, daring to open her eyes and look at the beast again. It instantly met her gaze, and its whole expression softened, changing from bemused to what Grant could only guess was relieved.

The Kangaskhan roared pitifully, wiggling its mammoth arms in another attempt to dislodge itself from the doorway. Startled by the noises, other people had gathered around, muttering to each other and looking at this huge creature with badly masked fear.

"Mama, pushabutton," Ty mumbled into his mother's chest. "Help Kanga."

"Help it?!" Alex cried back. "How on earth do I help it?!"

"He means push the button on the Pokéball, I… think." Grant suggested, and recalled that he was still holding his own.

"Push the… button?" Alex was completely lost. Her capsule had been forgotten inside of her little flat. The flat that her Kangaskhan was still attempting to break out from.

"Don't you have the Pokéball?" Grant asked, trying to regain a little control of the situation once again. "Little red and white ball thing?"

"Umm…" Alex staggered back to her feet. "I picked up somethin' like that earlier, I think… but then that monster appeared and I dropped it!"

"Dropped it?" Grant's face fell. "…inside your flat?"

"I dunno! Yes? I think so?!" Alex flailed at him. Too many questions were piling up. "I wasn't thinkin' straight! I was more worried about not getting eaten!"

The Kangaskhan looked a little forlorn, and let out a low, strangely muted roar. Sensing a change in the creature's demeanour, Grant lowered his voice. "Hey, you gotta be careful. You don't wanna upset it. Well, any more than it already is."

"Upset it?!" Alex cried. "I don't even know what it–" A thought struck her and she looked up at Grant hopelessly. "Wait, you're telling me this… _thing_ … it has feelings?"

"What? Well of course it does," Grant cocked an eyebrow. "It's a living thing, isn't it?"

"Well, I guess…" Alex inched closer. "But what is it? It's like an eight foot tall, monster…thing… and, _oh my goodness it has another one in its pouch_ , and – wait, is it like a kangaroo or somethin'? And, um-"

"Dad's game!"

Ty was pointing at the creature wedged in the doorway and looking up at his mother with a look of satisfaction. "Dad's game! Dad's game!"

"Dad's game?" She muttered, the clues finally sliding together like a block puzzle. Memories of her husband's expansive video game collection pushed their way to the front of her mind and she felt her stomach twist. "Oh, no… please don't tell me this is the one with the magic spells and the dragons?!"

"Magic spells?" Grant looked confused. What the bloody hell was this woman talking about? "None of them here. Least as far as I know? But dragons are definitely a thing."

Almost cheesily on cue, Camila the Spaniard charged past, paying no attention to the scene unfolding around her and holding what looked like a bemused Gible above her head. _"Gible! Excelente! Esto es increible!"_

A chuckle escaped Grant. "That was… weirdly convenient."

The joke was lost on Alex though, who simply stared at him, unblinking. He shifted from foot-to-foot, and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah…" he murmured awkwardly, unsure of what else he could say, "That's probably not the best thing to say, huh?" A nervous laugh endangered him further.

"I'm _glad_ y'all find this funny." Alex's voice cracked.

"I… I don't. Sorry." Grant apologised, glancing back at the Kangaskhan. "But yeah… I reckon you should probably do something about the Kangaskhan wanting to wreck your house, though."

Alex prickled. "But what can I do?!" she demanded, disliking his tone instantly. "It's not just gonna step out of the way and let me back in, will it?!"

"Won't it?"

"What do you mean, won't it?"

"What if it will? Try talking to it."

"Talk to it?! But it can't—"

"What if it can?"

"Well maybe _I_ can't!"

"So you wanna sleep outside tonight? Where there's more things like this one?"

Alex opened her mouth to argue but found that she couldn't. "…you're shrewd, boy." She drew out a tortured sigh, and tightened her grip on Ty. "…what do I do?"

"What it says on the tin, pretty much?" Grant shrugged. "They're smart creatures, so they'll understand."

"Alright…" She relented, tiptoeing towards the Kangaskhan. The creature, having renewed its struggling, seemed to be growing more and more distressed. She had to act fast or risk the building coming down. She craned her neck skywards, attempting to meet the Kangaskhan's gaze. "H-hello?" Her voice was timid and almost lost among the groaning and creaking of the infrastructure. "P-pleased to meet you?"

Grant shook his head fondly in the background. The Kangaskhan, however, stilled at the gentle voice and arched its mouth into what he swore was a smile.

Alex's nerves visibly melted away, as her gaze softened.

Perhaps it was a mother thing. A natural softness and reassurance to her voice. "Hey there," she cooed to the beast. "I'm here to help y'all, okay?"

Kangaskhan mewled softly. It was calmer now, no longer straining to break free of the door.

"Okay, okay…" Alex assessed the situation. Thanks to its struggling, Kangaskhan had managed to force everything up to its shoulders through the threshold, to the point of warping the frame and cracking the wall outside of it. This ain't gonna be easy, she muttered internally. "Right, Kanga… something?" Alex's memory failed her.

"-Skhan." Grant called from behind. "But you can give her a nickname if you want."

"Nickname?" Her confusion was mounting and she had to prioritise – most pressing thing first and then whatever else needed her attention afterwards. "Ugh! Tell me again later, a'right? Kanga _-skin_ , can you crouch, honey?"

"Kangaskhan." Grant called from the background, and Alex rolled her eyes in frustration. But to her surprise, the eight foot tall monster obeyed without question, gently bending down. The doorframe groaned in relief as its beams relaxed to return to their original position, and the wall hailed her efforts, sending splinters and plaster raining down from above.

"Okay, Kanga _sgone?_ " Alex mispronounced the name once again. "Juuuust shuffle back a little bit, a'right?"

"Kangaskhan!" Grant called again, resisting the urge to chuckle. Meanwhile, Kangaskhan continued to follow orders, and carefully stepped backwards, away from the door. But it had no intention of moving any further away, leaving only a tiny gap between the hallway and the front room of the flat. Alex's heart sank. There was no way she could squeeze herself into a gap that size.

"Good work, Kanga!" Alex had given up completely on trying to get the name right. She set her son down and knelt down to his level. "Ty honey? Mama has a very important job for you."

"Supaportant?"

"That's right, my little man. Super important. D'you think y'all can squeeze in there?"

"In the house?" Ty asked glancing behind him. "Yeah, easy! Easy easy!"

"Okay honey, now be careful, and go grab me that red an' white ball, you got it?!" Alex instructed.

Ty was all too eager to please, wriggling out of his mother's tight grasp and ducking past the Kangaskhan's enormous bulk. Alex felt her heart jump to her mouth. What if the creature moved suddenly or took fright? Her boy would be caught right in the crossfire, possibly hurt… or worse.

Luckily, Ty only stumbled a little and meandered across the wooden floors, disappearing from his mother's watchful sight.

A few agonisingly long minutes passed.

"Are you okay, baby? Have you found it yet?"

No sooner had she posed the question, she heard a strange, mechanical opening and shutting noise, followed instantly by a flash of brilliant red light. The Kangasomething disappeared, leaving Ty standing in what was once its shadow.

"What the?!" Alex gasped. "What just happened?!"

"Pushabutton!" Ty cheered. He wrenched the ball along in both hands, and stumbled back to his mother. "Kanga gone now!"

Alex took the capsule back from her son. She started to laugh. What else could she do? "My four year old son knows more about this world than me… I can't believe all this." The rush of relief was like soaking into a hot bath, and she couldn't help herself. "Come here, you little rascal!"

She wrapped her arms so tightly around Ty that he nearly had all the air crushed from his lungs and the four year old suddenly found himself smothered with kisses. His response was to giggle furiously.

Eventually calm, she restrained her son, suddenly fearful of him running away at the first opportunity, and turned back to Grant. "Thank ya so much for your help, uhh… Grant?"

"That's me." He affirmed "And hey, no worries," Grant smiled back. "I'm always happy to help. Is there anything you need to know?"

"Ahah… how long have you got?" Alex grinned.

"Too long, if I'm honest," Grant shrugged, his own Pokeball still in his hand.

"Well, if you're ever finding yourself a lil' bored, or hungry," Alex stood up again, stretching her legs. "Feel free to come over and visit. I'll make you somethin' ta say thanks, and you can tell me more about these... Pokemons?"

"Uhh, sure! I dunno how much help I'll be, but I'll try?"

"Well, ya sure know more than I do," Alex shrugged, before turning around and taking note of the damage her Kangathing had inadvertently done to her door. A sigh escaped her lips. "…what am I gonna do about this?"

"There'll be someone who can fix it here, I'm sure," Grant stood by her, raising a hand to his chin and surveying. "And if not… I once made a birdhouse?"

"You _made_ a birdhouse?" Alex sounded impressed.

"Well, yeah? My little sis really likes birds, so I thought I'd make one for her, and-"

But then Grant's enthusiasm left him. His hand shook as he pinched his nose, and he felt his knees wavering beneath him.

"H-hey, are you… okay?" All her problems evaporated into nothing at the sight of the young man crumpling to the ground.

His Pokeball slipped out of his hand, bouncing off the wooden slats, splitting open and revealing a chunky looking Pokémon with its eyes squeezed shut.

"Maku!" It cried, beating its chest and staring expectantly at the emptied man beside it.

Grant barely found the strength to acknowledge the thing's presence. "Oh…" was all he could manage.

"Something's troublin' ya, ain't it?" Alex knelt down, and looked him in the eye. His looked simultaneously vacant and yet deep with sadness. "Wanna come inside and talk about it? I got coffee?"

"…heh. I don't even like coffee," Grant found himself smiling. Making the effort to pat his pokémon on the head, and a mental note to introduce himself properly later, he fished around on the floor for his Pokeball – it had acquired another new dent from where it crashed into the woodwork – and returned the Makuhita back to its capsule.

Grant dragged himself back onto his feet. "Where'd you get coffee? I don't even have rice."

"Oh, it came with me from the other… real… world?" Alex shrugged again. "I'd dropped them in a panic, but I couldn't just leave good food to go to waste. Nuh uh! That's four years of bein' a mom for ya."

"Ahh, that's all good then." Grant found himself forcing a smile. "An' all I've got to my name is my bloody uniform. That'll be useful eh?"

And a necklace, he remembered, instinctively grasping at it with his free hand.

"Well, in any case, lemme treat you to a cuppa somethin'." Alex offered, beckoning him past her front door. "After all, it seems like we're both missin' someone."

"Am I that easy to read?" Grant felt his face reddening just slightly.

"All men are, honey." Alex chuckled, edging her front door closed and following after him.

* * *

All in all, Max was… less than pleased, with his experiences of this world so far. Left alone and abandoned in the middle of nowhere, he had no access to a computer, a cell phone, or even a Wi-Fi connection, and everyone in this desolate wasteland seemed to be ignoring him.

He'd tried everything; talking at them, yelling at them, and even prodding them when the frustration got too much. But the biggest reaction he'd received was merely a mildly annoyed stare. The person would then just shuffle away from him and leave him bewildered. No one was around to cook food for him either; something his stomach had quickly come to lament.

To make things worse, he was never a big fan of these… creatures to begin with, but the fact that the game 'gave' him one he didn't even recognise, forget like, was nothing short of an insult.

If he was going to have to suffer these Pokémon, why was he deprived of one of the cool ones, like that rock dinosaur or the flaming dragon thing, and instead given…

"Revolving gears." He groaned, watching the little metallic creature etch by with clockwork precision. "Revolving gears. Of all the freaking things…"

Max was not enjoying this. He didn't even sign up for this! Just how long was he going to be stuck here?! He had levels to gain, enemies to destroy! He'd even promised his Grampa a chess game, even though he knew he'd lose! So he couldn't stay that long anyway!

His new Pokémon continued to whirr innocently at him. A curse of his own fate. Maybe he should've picked a different house, instead of merely the first one he found.

"What do you want?" He glared at the thing. It didn't respond. Just a continued, rhythmic twitching noise. And for some reason it infuriated the boy.

"Ugh, is everything here going to ignore me?!" He cried, throwing his arms up into the air, even if just for the dramatic effect. It didn't matter if he was seen after all; no one way paying him any attent-

"Ohh, ye stupid thing, you."

Max was snapped out of his tirade almost instantly. He couldn't have imagined that voice, could he?

His brain couldn't have made up that weird accent, could it?

In the several hours he had been deprived of his computer, this was the first voice he'd heard other than his own. Well, one that didn't give an automated response, anyway. He dashed over to the window, and clambered over the toppled armchair to get a good look outside.

The natural light was still stinging on his eyes. Max winced from the pain, trying with everything he could to block it out so that he could concentrate long enough on the nature.

Trees.

A whole lot of marshy… stuff.

Rocks.

Trees.

Some two headed bird thing.

More trees.

And no sign of a person. Therefore no voice.

"Dammit…" Max sighed, deflating back into the confines of the toppled armchair. And after all that effort…

"Ohh, ye clumsy eejit!"

There was the voice again!

"Look, you're never gonna learn if ye just keep fallin' over, a'right?"

Max found the energy to once again scan the accursed outside. And among the green, browns, greys, and blues, a flash of red stuck out.

"Is that…?" He wondered, incredulous. The flash of red was dancing around the peripheries of his vision, and dodging in and out of the forest in the distance. There certainly was something else out there!

"Ohh, Leon, get back here!" The voice shouted again, revitalising Max's spirits. That accent really was odd indeed. Certainly one he wasn't used to. But nevertheless, it was a voice, and it did belong to a real person. Mission success!

"Alright!" He cried, dashing out of the front door and preparing to confront the nature. It may have been his worst foe, plaguing him with itchies and assaulting him with leaves and pricklies and things that stuck to his clothes - not to mention the hell that was mud and puddles - but he forced himself to look past it. There was another person out there. And that was the most important thing right now.

After only a few hasty steps, Max's chest was already sharp. And after a few minutes, he was completely tired out. With no other option, he conceded to nature and its scourge by taking rest against a tree. His vision was blurry, and his legs were heavy; was he really this unfit?

But nevertheless, he persevered. Pushed himself up from the trunk of the tree and kept going. He trudged through the grass, and the puddles, and the nature, determined to find the source of this voice.

A shrill whistle thumped his eardrums.

"Leon! Here boy!"

Max spun around to find another human – at last! – standing just a few feet away. Her bright red hair was enticed back into twin braids, and many twigs had woven their way between the strands. This teenager was no less mud splattered than he, but unlike Max, she seemed to relish in all this awful nature, again putting two fingers into her mouth and loosing another whistle.

FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!

"Ugh, ye silly thing…" she grinned despite everything, and stomped through the marshy ground, pursuant of the red flash in the distance.

And this left Max confused. How could this woman be having so much fun in this filth?

Temper fraying, and body exhausted, he summoned the energy he needed to put some logical thought into the situation. What would Grampa do, he wondered. Grampa was the smartest, most fearless man he knew, and always knew the right thing to do, no matter what the situation. Even when Charlie was right on his back, as he used to say… whoever Charlie was.

This woman was literally the only person he had even seen since arriving in this hellhole. A whole day left to his own devices, lost and alone, with nothing to do. His flat was boring, his Pokémon was annoying, his stomach was rumbling, and his mood had long ago degraded. And this whole thing was just making him madder.

"…screw it," Max muttered to himself. Grampa didn't need anyone, and neither did he. He'd figure it all out by himself, and then beat this accursed game, and impress everyone when he got back. Gamer first, human second, as he often-

"UNGH!"

Just as he had turned around to go back home, the very same bright red flash burst out of the brush, and crashed right into him. Bowled over by the errant ball of energy, Max was now little more than a marsh angel on the ground.

"Rrrowrr…" The pokémon mewled, looking incredibly un-guilty as it just sat on his stomach, unmoving. It cocked its head to the side, and gave him a bemused stare.

"W-what the?" Max groaned, flailing underneath the thing's weight. "Get OFF ME, you stupid—"

"LEON!" Its owner again appeared out of nowhere, snatching the thing up in her arms before it could dash off again. "Gotcha, ye little shite. Ye'v got te stop runnin' off like that! What if ye got lost?! What if ye got into trouble?! What if ye-"

"Knocked someone over?"

"Yeah, that! What if ye knocked someone ov—oh."

Caitlyn Browne crouched down and surveyed what she had to admit was a laughable sight. This four-foot-nothing yank had been knocked over by her Litleo, and ended up practically submerged in the marsh they were currently traversing.

"You okay, kid?"

"You mean aside from being covered in filth, starving, injured courtesy of your damned creature, and worst of all, deprived of entertainment?" The young boy's voice was harsh. "…Th-then yes, I'm just peachy!"

"Ugh, you're one of those…" She pushed him away again. "How can ye be 'deprived of entertainment' in a world of limitless possibilities? You could do literally anything here! If you're bored already, what the feck does the universe need te do t'entertain ye?"

"A Wi-Fi signal would be nice…" Max grumbled, attempting to wipe the grime from his clothes, with little success.

"Fantasy's become reality in this world, and ye still wanna be glued te the internet?" Caitlyn raised an eyebrow.

"Not my fantasy," Max persisted in complaining. "If this were a real fantasy come true, right now I'd be—"

"Shootin' t'ings?"

Caitlyn squished the hyperactive Litleo in her arms. "Perhaps ye need a new fantasy, kid. One a bit… less depraved."

"Oh, and I suppose having animals batter each other to death is considered sophisticated in your lands?" Max countered, watching Caitlyn's stare wither just slightly. "…where are you even from, anyway?"

"Ye can't tell?" She huffed, torn between shock and amusement. "Wow. There's a forst. I'm from Ireland. Name's Caitlyn. Yours?"

"M-Max…" the little blonde boy stammered.

"A'right… and what Pokémon did ye end up gettin'?"

"Some… revolving gear thing."

"Revolving…? Klink?"

"Sure?"

"And where're ye staying?"

"Umm…" Max was hesitant. None of these trees or rocks were familiar to him. "I-I'm not sure…"

"Well… let's see if we can get ye back, a'right?" Caitlyn offered. Her Litleo flailed in her arms as the pair trudged through more sticky, swampy terrain.

"Y'know, you still owe me."

"I do?"

"Yeah. Specifically, your Pokémon does. For pushing me in the mud."

"Well, that was yer own fault for bein' in his way."

"How was it my fault? I didn't know the stupid thing was gonna bound out of nowhere!"

"Why were ye even out here on yer own? Ye could've been attacked by somethin'."

"What, you expect me to use some revolving gears to protect myself? What's it gonna do? Spin at the inevitable predators?"

"Would ye rather fight the thing off yerself?"

"…you're dodging my point! You owe me for getting me covered in mud!"

"Aww, ye poor t'ing. Is all this outside gettin' to ye?"

"Yes, actually! I freaking hate the outside!"

"Ugh…" Caitlyn sighed. She skipped along a heavily rooted section, her Leon in her arms and her 'acquaintance' in tow. He stumbled along behind, clumsy feet hitting just about every slight raise in the ground.

"I'll tell ye what," She raised a finger. "You said ye were hungry earlier, didn'che? Well, how's this sound? I'll make ye somethin' to make up for Leon being an eejit, and in return, you can get the feck outside, and make friends with ye bloody Klink."

"How does that pay me back? I'm still doing something in return for it, and getting nothing out of it."

"Nothing? How is training up a Pokémon getting nothing?"

"Well it's not gonna do me any use, is it?"

"It'll save yer feckin' life, ye stupid bastard."

"It won't need to. I won't be endangering myself."

"So what? You're just gonna sit in yer shack, starin' at the wall and starvin' te death?"

"I have food. I won't starve."

"It won't last long, kid. I reckon a week, maybe ten days? And that's assuming ye know how te cook it, which I'm doubtin'."

"Maybe for a glutton like yourself."

"Hmph. Says the yank."

Caitlyn stopped in her tracks, and caused Max to stop abruptly behind her, slipping off of a suspended tree branch and knee deep into sludge.

"Look. Just train the bugger, and I'll make sure ye don't starve. Sound fair?"

"…fine."

"See? Was that so hard?"

"Immensely."

"Good," Caitlyn smirked, spying a gaggle of tumbledown houses in the distance. "Cause I've got a feeling you're gonna need te get used to hard, boy."


	6. Survival, Training

A gentle crackle fizzed through the air. Tensions were high, and patience was wearing thin, but through a haphazard session of trial and error, Caitlyn was learning the subtle nuances of this world's food.

Butter was still a great cooking medium, however it was far thicker than she was used to; if anything it was closer to a cheese. Flour seemed a lot more temperamental too, as it had argued with her and reacted poorly to the thick, gloopy solution it had been peppered into. Pasta was the same, more or less, something which she was more than thankful for. But the sheer fact that the concoction she had created could support its own weight – complete with a heavy stockpot and a wooden spoon – had her frustrated.

This was a meal she had prepared dozens of times before, and yet slight changes in the compositions of the ingredients had made her look incompetent. Right in front of someone she felt pressured to impress.

Caitlyn dusted off her floury forearms, and wiped her brow. "…that'll have te do."

She wrenched the spoon out of its mixture, and slopped a healthy, steaming portion of it onto one plate, followed by a second. Neither of the plates cracked, thankfully, so Caitlyn negotiated them, a pair of forks and a bowl between her arms. She made her way through, very mindful of the awkward bump in the floor between the kitchen and dining/sitting room.

"Right. It's far from a masterpiece…" Caitlyn muttered, manoeuvring herself around the awkwardly placed Leon, who had chosen the middle of the room to eat his pellets from the bowl. With a small sigh, she plonked a plate down in front of her 'guest'. "But I'm pretty sure it's edible at least. Eat up?"

"…what is it?" Max had to ask, eyeing the indiscernible blob of yellowish colours that was splattered across his plate. His eyes drifted to the tiny Klink across the room, facing a bowl of pellets in the corner and 'eating' them one at a time by snaring each pellet between its gears and crushing them.

"Mac and cheese," Caitlyn responded. "I t'ought you yanks loved this shite?"

"Well, when it's done properly…" Max prompted a growl from the redhead. "What the hell's with the beans?"

"I like beans with m'mac and cheese! What's wrong with that?"

"So this unholy abomination is a normal thing where you're from?"

"Unholy…?! Y'know, just because you're not used ta seein' somethin', doesn't make it weird! If this isn't good enough fer ya, you can cook yer own food. How's that sound?"

"But I can't cook…" Max muttered into his plate of food. "A-and this food's at least better than mom's…"

"Yer mam's not much of a cook?"

"If anything, she's too much of a cook." Max sighed. "You think this is a big portion, right?"

"Nope. This is a snack."

"Snack?!" Max was taken aback. "W-well, uhhh, my mom's portions are like double this size. You can barely fit them on a damn plate…"

"Well, ya won't grow if ya don't eat," Caitlyn planted a hand on his head. "Yer mam's probably just tryna get'cha ya grow up a bit. After all, you're tiny."

"Hey hey, hands off!" Max flailed. "I lament being a shortie, but there's nothing I can do about it! So I'd appreciate it if you refrained from mocking my shortie…ness."

"…sorry," Caitlyn recoiled. "I was just… makin' banter."

"Banter's all well and good," the boy shoved some mac and cheese into his mouth. And swallowed thickly. "But it's only fun when the other person pushes back. When that stops, they'll just get pushed away. And that's not fun at all."

Caitlyn's fork had remained untouched for a while now. Instead, she sat, absorbing the young boy's heavy words as he continued to shovel her pitiful excuse for a meal.

"…so who pushed who away?" She eventually asked, and provoked a choking splutter from Max. Flailing once again, he furiously fought back the threat of tears prickling at the corners of his eyes. But that was from the food, of course. Nothing else. He forced down the mouthful and allowed breath back into his lungs.

"You have… horrible timing. You know that?" Max fixed Caitlyn with a glare.

"Ye wouldn't be the first to tell me."

Max rubbed at his eyes, blinking viciously to clear his vision. Caitlyn had finally raised her fork to her lips. She chewed slowly, her attention wholly on him.

"I-it was my dad, who pushed my mom away." He sighed. "Mom always said he was a 'loveable asshole', which I think means he was nasty, but also endearing at the same time? I-I dunno, is that a thing?"

Caitlyn simply nodded. This probably wasn't the best time to interrupt with something stupid.

"But yeah, anyway, dad was always mocking mom and me. Sometimes it sounded like a joke, and sometimes it was a little annoying, but you could laugh it off. Other times… it really didn't sound like a joke. Those times, it sounded like he meant it when he called mom a… dirty horse? O-or when he said mean things about grandma. I mean, she made weird food, said weird things, and I never liked the sweaters she sent me, but she wasn't _really_ the spawn of Satan. Least I don't think she was? She was just… old fashioned, I guess?"

Max's arms were drawn close to his body. Occasionally he would lift his fork to his mouth, and cram sporadic amounts of food inside, but his arms would always return to exactly where they were.

"I never really liked my dad. I mean, we didn't have anything in common, and you could never have a serious conversation with him. I kinda wish he and mom never split up though. But that was before he hurt her…"

"He… hurt her?" Caitlyn could barely gasp out her question. "Like, physically?"

"Mhmm," Max's lip trembled. "I-I got home from school, and found mom cleaning up a broken mirror. She said she fell into it, but I thought she was lying. There was… w-way too much blood for that. I asked why dad wasn't cleaning up, but mom just got all shy, so I rang up Grampa, and he helped get her to the hospital. I stayed with Grampa that night. His house was scary."

Max glanced off into the distance. "That was the last time I saw dad. Mom and me moved way, way away from him – a whole three states – a-and she's never been the same since…"

Nothing was said for quite some time. Max's thoughts were currently a dark soup, while Caitlyn just wasn't sure exactly what to say. While she'd had some experiences of her own, nothing in her memory banks could compare to this. But something needed to be said.

"People… don't listen to ye much, do they?"

Max continued to burrow into the cushions of the tiny two seater, like some kind of self-conscious beetle. "…how could you tell?"

"Ye just spent half an hour spilling out yer backstory to somebody you met just a few hours ago. I mean, what is this, a soap opera?"

"…sorry." Max found a weak chuckle despite everything. "I suppose it was just… nice, to have someone listen for once. Mom's always too busy, and I'm not stupid enough to talk to people online. Grampa listens, but I don't get to go see him much any more..."

"Ah, that explains a bit," Caitlyn offered a knowing smile. "Well, you've always got a couple of listeners right here."

"Couple-?!" Max spun around, ready to scorn this invader. But it etched back innocently, clicking away at him. Max's eyes softened. "O-oh…"

"Looks like he likes ye," Caitlyn grinned, and ruffled Max's blonde curls.

"…it-it's a boy?"

"Nope. Doesn't have a gender. But that doesn't matter. 'He' sounds a bit nicer than 'it', doesn'it?"

"I… suppose it does," Max conceded, attempting eye contact with the Klink that had suddenly taken a shine to him.

"Why don't you give it a try?" Caitlyn urged him. "The food ye have won't last long, and you're gonna need to do somethin'. If ye don't get on top of the trainin', an' quickly, you'll get left behind. Which is a shame, cause you're so similar…"

"S-similar?!" Max spluttered, shooting daggers back at the redhead. "Just how am I similar to… to this thing?!"

"Well, lemme think…" Caitlyn met his glare with a snicker, and began counting off on her fingers. "Forstly, yer difficult to like. Yer not a bad kid, but you've all the manners of a Dubliner on a pub crawl."

"Secondly," Caitlyn forestalled his whining. "You seem te function better when things are more… linear?"

Max raised an eyebrow.

"You like structure," she reiterated, and the eyebrow was appeased.

"Thirdly, ye like machines," Caitlyn ticked off another reason, again ticking off Max's waning patience. "Heck, ya basically are a machine, let's face it."

"And lastly, just for now…" She smirked. "Yer hard to work with, but with some patience, I reckon there's a lotta potential hidden in there."

"Potential?" Max's expression was blank.

"You know lots about other games. Just apply that shite to this, and ye could do really well. All you need, I think, is patience."

"I'm… not a patient person." Max deadpanned, however his gaze remained on the Klink that was hovering close to him.

"It's a great t'ing to learn." Caitlyn stood up from the couch, and stretched her skinny legs. "And you're gonna need it in a world like this."

"Wait, where're you going?" Max asked with a start, as Caitlyn beckoned to her hyperactive Litleo. The thing sprang from its bowl and dashed over to her, tripping over its own feet in the process.

"Home," Caitlyn responded, her tired eyes glancing over to the fatigued sunset, yellow through brownish through a vivid maroon. "I hafta sleep sometime today, after all."

"This early?"

"It might be early for you, but remember that it's what, five, six hours later for me right now?"

"B-but we're in the same timezone now!"

"Our bodies aren't though. That'll take a few days."

"And you're just gonna leave me here with all this mess?"

"Hey, I cooked it, so you get to clean it. It's only fair."

"B-but there's so much!"

"Well then ye better get yer arse movin'!" Caitlyn grinned, and dragged her tired feet towards the door. With Leon the Litleo bounding after her, a relentless ball of energy, Max quickly found himself alone once again. Well, alone with a _Klink_ , anyway.

"And I suppose you can't wash dishes, can you?" Max gave the Klink a heavy stare. It said nothing, and whirred rhythmically.

The floor was a mess. That blasted fire cat thing left mud everywhere. His bed still hadn't been made – a fun challenge he wasn't looking forward to – and Max just knew that the congealed, sludgy filth on the kitchen countertop would need something much stronger than a scrubby brush to remove.

Like an exorcist, maybe.

Max buried his hands deep in his pockets. Just who was going to do all of this?

But then he remembered; there wasn't anyone else. If he didn't do it, no one would.

Max let out a beleaguered sigh. "Why me?"

Meanwhile Caitlyn had let herself out, and began a slow, stiff walk back home. The gently purpling skies above were a constant reminder just how far away she way from home. In a standard Irish winter, even seeing the sun was a rare occurrence. Watching it tie dye the atmosphere was an alien experience for her in both mind and body. All that talk about family wasn't doing much for her spirits either. Were her dad and granda coping okay, knowing that she didn't come home that night? Did they even know at all? Did time move on in the real world while she was here?

With a sigh, Caitlyn's hands fell into the pocket of her hoodie, and her heart gave a tiny lurch as her fingers brushed up against something cold and metallic.

"…of all the things," she crumpled, burying her head in one hand. She thought she'd left everything back at the chalet she'd been 'given' – her phone was obviously going to be useless without signal, while her umbrella and shopping at least had purpose – but fate continued to surprise her.

Glinting in the last embers of daytime, Caitlyn frowned the wrench her dad had left outside the night before. She'd picked it up before heading off to work the next morning, but meant to take it to him. That way she'd stop one of her neighbours or a random passer-by from lifting it…

And now it was here with her. She had to embrace the irony.

Leon the Litleo shuffled to a halt once he realised that his trainer wasn't following after him. He bounced back down the path to find her leaning up against a wall, one arm across her face.

"Mrrow?" He mewled in confusion.

"Ngh?!" Caitlyn sprung back to life again, and furiously rubbed at her face. "Ohh, s-sorry boy. I just got a bit distracted, a'right? Ye ready to go again?"

Leon made a chittering noise in response, and dashed back off down the path again. Caitlyn afforded a weak smile, and followed after her ball of energy. The offending wrench was stashed back into her hoodie pocket, and suddenly Caitlyn was feeling very worn out indeed. She groaned, and muttered up to the stars, "Forgive me."

* * *

"Alright, go!"

"Maku!" The pokémon cried, charging forwards at a surprising pace. Arms outstretched, it bashed into its target, trying with all its might to push them back.

But Grant wasn't going to yield so easily. Kneeling down to compensate for the height difference, he resisted the Makuhita's advance, but only just. It might have been small, but this pokémon had some serious force behind it.

Makuhita wasn't so eager to listen to Grant at first, showing more interest in self-guided training than kowtowing to the whims of a human. But when the human proved a more playful adversary, it soon changed tack.

"C'mon Makkie," Grant puffed, using his slight height advantage and upper body strength to force the pokémon back. The two might have weighed about the same, however Makuhita was more densely packed, in contrast to Grant's long limbs spreading his weight out more, so Makuhita could abuse a small chink in this human's armour.

It tucked its arms in close, and launched its entire body at the man. Hit with a force not unlike a cannonball, Grant was knocked back with little trouble.

"Ngh!" He winced, shuffling back on his knees. This gave Makuhita the momentum it needed, and it slammed him again, bowling him over.

"Ugh!" Grant choked out a laugh, feeling like a muddy, sweaty pancake as about ninety kilos of Makuhita lay across him, pinning him to the ground.

"Makuuuu!" Makuhita hollered, flailing its little arms around in what Grant could only assume was celebration.

"Eheh… great job, Makkie." He grinned. He wrenched the pokémon off of him and persuaded his exhausted joints into a sitting position. "I reckon that counts as a battle, don't you?"

"Hi…ta?" Makuhita stared back at him, perplexed.

"What do you think, Alex?" Grant called back. "Reckon Maku did a good j-oh."

A light snoring punctuated Grant's question, and the Aussie shook his head fondly as he noticed that Alex had fallen asleep in the plastic desk chair outside her flat. Her head had fallen down sideways, with one of her hands for a makeshift pillow, propped up dangerously on one elbow.

After putting her Ty to bed a few hours ago, she had engaged the Australian in some 'grown up' conversation, where he had explained what he could about this world they were stuck in. The concept of training seemed to flummox her completely however, so Grant had taken the liberty of improvising a 'battle' with himself and his Makuhita.

"Ahh, typical," Grant shook his head fondly. "Looks like I'm not as good a teacher as I thought, eh Makkie?"

"Mak-mak-mak-mak…" His Makuhita was ignoring him too, focused on punching at an invisible object.

Grant rubbed at his eyes, and glanced off into the distance. The sun had set hours ago. So long ago that it was even threatening to once again rise on the other end of the horizon. And yet Grant was only just feeling the weight of tiredness. Even after what must have been a couple of hours wrestling with his excitable Makuhita, the urge to sleep was barely even present, just a curious nibble in the back of his head.

Dinner had been a messy affair, to say the least, it mostly involved Alex and her years' experience cooking for Ty's selective palette, with help from Camila the Spaniard, to accommodate the large group of people wanting to be fed. Even though the meal itself consisted of very basic things – an enormous helping of hot chips, or _fries_ as Alex called them, with an entire stock pot's worth of baked beans, and maybe fifty sausages – the offering of food was not begrudged.

Ironically, Ty wasn't satisfied, due to the lack of turkey dinosaurs. Grant noticed that the Indian girl Priya hadn't taken any sausages either.

But the initial fears of being trapped in this world had melted away for the majority, soon replaced with amazement. After all, it was a real life pokémon training journey. What was so scary about that?

The group of youths was engaging in polite, sometimes even enthusiastic conversation, which ranged from the obligatory discussion over what pokémon they had obtained, to how different life was in other countries. Laughter had broken out when a particularly fervent Cranidos crashed into someone's chair in search of food, and knocked the person in it flying.

Shemmy was one of the first to disappear that night, scooping up his offending Cranidos and scuttling off to his room. Ivan the Russian quickly followed into his adjacent flat, his Tyrogue in tow. Grant mused that it was perhaps the language barrier pushing him away, or maybe just exhaustion given his 'time zone'. Others began following in their examples, slowly filtering out whenever conversation swayed away from their interests. Grant noticed a slight pattern in that those from 'later' countries would obviously be getting tired earlier. Priya turned out to be quite the night owl, but even she had succumbed to exhaustion with the remaining Europeans about an hour afterwards, her little Natu perched in her long hair.

And then it was only himself, Alex, Pedro, and Anibal, an Argentinian who was lost in a vibrant if slightly strangled debate with the Brazilian. Judging by their hand flailing and volume, Grant deduced that the two were probably arguing over sports. He stretched his arms, cracked his neck from side to side, and rolled his shoulders. Each and every niggle was still present.

"What to do…" He sighed, and glanced around. He couldn't very well disturb the two Latin Americans and their fervent discussion. After all, Pedro didn't even speak English it seemed, and it was highly unlikely they were discussing a sport he knew anything about. Alex on the other hand, was still fast asleep, although her elbow was in serious danger of slipping out from underneath her.

He debated whether or not he should try and prevent that rude awakening.

"Ahh, bugger it all," boredom eventually rang out. "C'mon Makkie, let's get home."

"Hih?" His Makuhita grunted back at him. It had been punching at a rock for the past ten minutes or so, and reduced it to little more than gravel in the meantime.

"C'mon, bed time!"

"Kuuugh…" his Makuhita groaned, dragging its feet across the dirt as it trudged back towards him. It seemed to derive pleasure from the subsequent dust cloud it had kicked up in the process.

"Well aren't you all covered in crap?"

Grant had his hands on his waist, glancing down at the chubby fighter, now wearing a thick layer of dirt and an enormous, cheesy grin.

"Well I was gonna let you sleep outside of your poke ball tonight," Grant shook his head fondly. Makuhita remained unfazed, or at least showed an impressive poker face.

"So I guess that's a bust, eh? Sorry Makkie."

There was a flash of bright red, and Makuhita disappeared into its capsule.

"Silly bugger…" He muttered, and paced back towards his flat. Before that, however, a quick detour to Alex's was needed.

With a careful grip on her shoulder, he made the attempt to wake her without scaring her. She started at the sudden contact, and awoke with a loud snort. "Awhuh?! What the?!"

"Evening, sleepyhead?" Grant smiled, hoping to ease her startled nerves with his friendly face. "I figured I'd wake you up before I went off to bed myself. Thought it'd be a bad idea for you to stay like that."

"Nng, yeah… probably." Alex was blinking furiously, trying to focus her bleary vision. Grant could hear her stagger back to her flat in the background as he bashed open the door to his own.

Depression sank in almost immediately. The moment that door closed again, it sealed off what little was making him happy in this world. After a quick shower to clean himself off, he sank beneath the thin covers of his bed, and realised just how empty his 'home' was. Here, there were next to no responsibilities. His job was missing him, he hoped. His rugby friends probably wouldn't have noticed that he was missing yet; practice was only once a week. The bookshelf he was building for Isabelle… would have to remain unfinished for just now.

And then there was Isabelle herself. Was she coping okay without him?

Was she eating fine?

Was she scared that he hadn't come home?

Did she even remember who he was…?

The bed's cheap springs groaned underneath his considerable weight as he rolled over, bundling himself up in his covers and staring at the wall. The light of a lone streetlamp was filtering through the flimsy curtains, bringing just enough light into the room to illuminate his dark silhouette against the grey wall.

It might have been four in the morning, but Grant still felt wide awake. Faced with the prospect of eternity stuck in this world, away from everything that made him him, he just… couldn't bring himself to fall asleep.


	7. Drop Rate

The sandy haired haystack was the last to awaken the next morning.

"O-oh, hello… Grant?" Camila murmured back to him as he burst out of his front door. "You ahh… have siesta too, Senor?"

"Siesta?" A pair of bleary eyes blinked back at her. "…n-no, it's not a siesta. I uhh, just woke up."

"Ohhh, si si, _intende_ ," Camila offered him a polite smile. "You… sleep bad?"

"Could say that." Grant scratched his head. He hadn't fallen asleep until well after the sun had risen, and had seen every hour since. By the time midday rolled around, and it became too noisy outside, he had decided that it simply wasn't worth the effort any more.

Grant stretched his tired limbs, and stumbled towards the central grassy plain, which had somehow been adjudicated as a meeting area. Priya was doing her best to maintain the attention of the rowdy group.

"O-okay…" she stammered, her vocals and her limbs quivering. "S-so the reason I called you all here this morning, is ab-about money."

"What money?" Someone from the crowds called.

"Ex…exactly," Priya shivered. "We don't have any money. And if we don't have any money, that means we can't buy anything. We won't have clean clothes, or supplies, and we'll run out of food before long. A-and after that…"

"So how we get money?" Shemmy made his presence known.

"I think that's what we should find out today…?" Priya stammered. "Does-does anyone have any ideas?"

"What if we make clothes?" Shemmy offered.

"Well… if we had the materials, that would be possible," Priya pursed her lips. "Can... can you sew?"

"…no." Shemmy bowed his head.

"Ah," she sighed. "Anyone else?"

She was met with more silence.

"…good thinking at least," Alex piped up, offering them both a smile. "Tell me, kids. You earned money in the games, right?"

Several pairs of eyes turned to Alex.

"I'll take that as a yes," she forced a chuckle. "Well… how did y'all earn money on these games? Can't you do it the same way on here?"

"You… battle other trainers." Shemmy explained for her. "But if trainers have no money, we get no money."

"I see…" Alex raised her spare hand to her chin. "Were there other ways?"

"Sell things to shop. But nothing to sell."

"Oh lord… there has to be some way!"

"You could sometimes find stuff lying around?" Another voice entered the conversation. Heads spun, and Grant was discovered among the crowds.

"Now I reckon," the Australian scratched at the birds nest he called hair. "If we went out into the wild, and looked around, we might just find some items. Probably not all that many, but if we can scrape some money together from the shit we _do_ find, that's a start, right?"

"And we… share money?" Shemmy raised an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah? We're in this together, right?" Grant shrugged out a response.

"Is a little bit… communism," Shemmy was very not impressed. "I don't like communism. Is unfair to working people."

"Well, look at it this way," Grant held his hands a few inches apart. "Say you've got… I dunno, a sandwich or something, and the guy next to you has nothing. Would you share your sandwich with him?"

"What if he can get sandwich for himself?" Shemmy countered.

"But what if he's spent all day looking for food, and didn't find anything?" Grant didn't miss a beat.

"Then is his fault. Sandwich doesn't run."

"But he put in the work. Shouldn't he be rewarded?"

"Taking food is not reward. Is punishment for other man."

"Ugh, you're not getting it…" Grant buried his face in one hand.

"No, I get it perfect." Shemmy countered. "You want food, you work for it. You build house, you are working, you get food. You walk around with shovel, you are not working. In my country, hard working man get same money as lazy, drunken man. Is not fair."

"…what? Still?" Grant frowned. "Didn't that stop in nineteen-eighty-something?"

"Yes. But my father, my grandfather, broken men because of 'sharing money'." Shemmy folded his arms.

"Well I, umm… I'm sorry to hear that," Grant rubbed the back of his neck. _What now?_

"Let me try," Alex placed a hand on Grant's arm. "You're… bad at wording things. Maybe a woman's touch can help."

"Eh?" Grant balked. "Umm, go for it. I'm gonna try that thing I suggested. Anyone keen?"

There was a vague smattering of acknowledgement from the gathered crowd.

"It won't be too far, okay?" Grant tried to drum up some enthusiasm. "It's just a way of finding out of this actually works. The more of us there are, the safer we'll be. Keen?"

Camila the Spaniard muttered something to Pedro, and the pair stepped forwards. "We… can help?"

"Sure, sweet as!" Grant cracked an actual smile for the first time in a while. "The more help, the better! Anyone else feeling brave?"

After another bout of unenthusiastic mumbling, Anibal the Argentinian stepped forwards. _Maybe the other two persuaded him…?_ Thought Grant.

"Don't believe we've properly met?" The Australian offered his hand.

"Anibal," the dark haired beanpole shook, an almost business-like formality about him. "Are… you certain you know what to do?"

"Pretty sure?" Grant shrugged. "We head to the nearest route, or path or whatever, and see if there's just items lying around. If there are, we can bring them back, sell them, and share the profits."

"Mhmm…" Anibal stroked his bristly chin. "Will the people who _find_ the thing get… more money?"

"Eheh… haven't thought that far just yet…" Grant rubbed the back of his neck. "Right! Is this everyone? Guess we'll get going th-"

Grant had barely taken a step south, where he had walked into and bowled over something.

"Whooa!" Grant stumbled. "What the?!"

But lying at his feet, and struggling to regain her balance, was Priya.

"O-oh! Oh crap, sorry!" Grant stammered, and without missing a beat, he grasped around her arm and wrenched the tiny thing from the floor.

"Th-thanks…" Priya mumbled, her feet dangling a clear six inches off the ground. "I… I wanted to come along," her spare hand pinned the hem of her skirt down. "A-and… help?"

"Oh, you do?" Grant finally realised, placing her back on the ground as gently as he could. "Why didn't you say something?"

"I tried to…" Priya mumbled, rubbing her arm where Grant had grabbed it.

"Well, you said so now. That's really great of ya." Grant smiled, oblivious. "Well, we've got a nice balance of pokémon between us. I mean, you've got a Natu, right?"

Priya adjusted her glasses. "R-right."

"And Camila over there's got a Gible, which'll be really useful," Grant grabbed attention of the ponytailed Spaniard. "Hey Cammy, what pokémon do those guys have?"

 _"_ _Que?_ Cammy?" She blinked back at him for a moment. "Ohh, si si!"

Camila then gabbled back to Pedro the Brazilian, who responded in kind and retrieved his pokeball. Anibal was already on the case;

"Bwee!"

A small orange creature bounced out of its capsule. Grant had to stare at it for a moment. _What the hell is that thing?_

Sporting two tails and a stern expression, the two-legged weasel thing forced Grant to shake the dust from his memory banks. _That was from one of those newer games... wasn't it?_

"That's a…" Grant massaged his forehead. "Buizel! That's the one!"

"Si, is a Buizel." Camila reached up to pat him on the shoulder. "And Pedro, he have ahh… how you say in English?"

Following the younger girl's pointing finger, Grant spied a tiny scrap of green and white at Pedro's feet.

"Hey whoa, a Ralts?!" He gasped. "Wow, nice one!" He offered the Brazilian a high five.

Pedro stared back at him blankly.

"Maybe not…" Grant chuckled. "Knew it'd only be so long before someone got one of the cool ones."

"We are living in a Pokémon world…" Priya mumbled next to him. "Aren't they all cool?"

"Well _yeah_ ," Grant's voice suddenly increased in volume. "But he got one of those ones that everyone loves, y'know? A-and that's…"

He was met with several stares. Three blank, and one confused.

" _Esta muchos buenos_ ," Camila muttered to Pedro, and his expression too fell blank.

"I… guess you don't see them that way huh?" He forced a smile. "Right! Forget I said anything. Let's just head off into the wilderness and find stuff."

And Grant stumped forwards ahead of the others, hiding the flush in his cheeks as he and his four 'volunteers' left the little meeting area.

* * *

"So…" Alex asked of Shemmy, keeping one expert eye trained on her blizzard of a four year old. "Talk to me, Sugar. Can't I convince ya to help everyone?"

"Why you call me sugar?" Shemmy misunderstood completely.

"Ohh, it's just a nickname," Alex chuckled. "Don't you like nicknames?"

"I already have nickname. Shemmy." The Pole was brusque. "I'm not sugar. Sugar is all same. Like workers in factory."

"Ahh, but if ya look _real close…_ " Alex pinched a thumb and forefinger together. "You'll see that each and every bit of sugar is different. You just gotta pay attention."

"But sugar is used, like pawn on chessboard," Shemmy's eyebrows were knotted together. "They only used to make end product nice."

"Or, they all _work together_ to make somethin' a lil' sweeter," Alex's confidence was in full swing now. "So, did ya wanna help us make this place a lil' sweeter?"

"And give money to people who not working?" Shemmy wasn't relenting.

"What if you were the guy who wasn't working?" Alex countered.

"I always work."

"Well, what if you weren't?" Alex reasoned. "Let's say you couldn't find any work? You haven't eaten for days. What if someone offered you food? Would you take it?"

"Would not happen. I find work."

"And if there isn't any?"

"Then I make work."

Alex exhaled deeply. Forget sugar. This one was a tough cookie.

"Well, what if they couldn't get work?" She tried a different tack. "Would you just let them go without food?"

"There is always way." Shemmy folded his arms.

"Maybe for you, mister resourceful," Alex held back a chuckle. "But other people ain't so lucky. What about them?"

"Perhaps borrow money, and pay back later…" Shemmy grimaced.

"Ahh, so you'd be okay if people _borrowed_ stuff from y'all?" Alex was finally gaining ground.

"…maybe." The Pole rubbed his head.

"Well, that's somethin' at least…" She chuckled. Her gaze drifted to her boy Ty, still a whirlwind of energy. He had found a stick to amuse himself with, running it along the varying surfaces and enjoying the sounds.

"You doin' okay, honey?" Alex called out to her boy.

"Doin' okay mama!" Ty waved his stick swinging hand, acknowledging his mother's presence for all of perhaps three seconds, and dashing off again.

"It's almost time for lunch, Ty!" Alex made another attempt at his attention. "Is there anythin' you'd like?"

"Tatertots?!" Ty yelled back, his focus torn between the wanting of food, and a flurry of feathers that had just crashed out of the sky near him.

"Ohh…" Alex immediately regretted asking. "I don't think we can get those, Ty!"

"What are tay-der-tots?" Shemmy looked bewildered.

"Umm, they're like, little balls of potato, deep fried…?" Alex's face had fallen to somewhere south of her neck by the time she reached the end of her sentence. She stood up from the bench she and Shemmy were sharing, and felt her knees crack with the effort.

"Americans…" Shemmy scoffed. "You deep fry everything."

"Yeah, well…" Alex couldn't think of a comeback in time, what with her 'traditional' food choices of deep fried turkey, deep fried chicken, deep fried pastry and even deep fried _dough_ working against her. "If I knew anythin' about whatever you guys ate, I'd make fun o' that!"

"Onions. Lots of onions." Shemmy offered to her. "Also sausages."

Alex cracked a grin. "I'll bear that in mind."

What little sleep she received last night was already catching up on her, it seemed. Ty might have slept like a log, but his constant flailing had Alex waking up every hour or so, all the while forced to balance on the ten percent of the bed that the log wasn't occupying. This, combined with her falling asleep at a cheap plastic table, held up only by the precarious balance of her elbow, was proving quite the task on her body.

"Ty…" She sighed, chasing the fifty metres or so that her son had somehow made in the moment she turned away to address Shemmy. "I don't think we'll be able to do tater tots, sweetie," she called to her son, who was crouched down in front of something she couldn't immediately identify. "Is there something else you'd – oh, Jesus?!"

Alex's legs almost fell away from her, she was running so fast. "Ty! Get away from that! Danger!"

"Danger?"

Ty swivelled around to acknowledge his mother, just as she crashed to her knees beside him.

"Yes, danger! These things can attack! Now y'all get behind me!"

"But mama-"

"No buts, Ty! Danger! Now get behind mama!"

Ty dropped his dragging stick – now worn down to a point – and hauled his feet on the long walk behind her. The dangerous assailant that had Alex petrified emitted an odd, preening noise.

"PrrRrrr…"

The small, pastel grey creature made sudden, jerky movements of its head. With gormless wide eyes, this creature had mastered the art of aimless staring. It flopped its wings a couple of times, and provoked Alex into emitting some kind of primal screech, and then shuffling back two or three feet.

"Prr?" The pokémon cooed, and hopped after Alex. She whimpered, shuffled away a few more steps, and fumbled for the Pokeball in her handbag.

"O-o-okay…" Alex's twitchy fingers were struggling to work the mechanism. "H-how was it y'all did the… thing?"

"Pushabutton." Ty deadpanned, as he shuffled ambivalently around his perplexed mother. Meanwhile, the little bird pokémon continued to just stare at the both of them. He took advantage of Alex's cluelessness, and crept closer to the creature.

It did nothing.

"Friend!" Ty yelled, and leapt at the Pokémon, wrapping his arms tightly around it. Predictably, it panicked, and started flapping its wings in a fervour. Feathers were scattered everywhere, and between the bird Pokémon's squawking and Ty's relentless giggles, there was just enough noise to finally distract Alex from the pokeball in her hands.

"Hunh?!"

Her pokeball fell to the ground, clanging across the wooden slats with a metallic ring, and Alex swooped upon her boy. "Ty! Get _away_ from that thing!"

Alex pried her son from the bird pokémon, scattering yet more feathers in the process.

"Don't, you, scare me like that!" She looked Ty in the eyes. "You could've been hurt, Ty! And what kinda mama would I be if I let you get hurt?!"

"Is okay, mama…" Ty sighed, refusing his mother's gaze.

"Now promise me you won't do that again. _Promise!"_ Alex's voice lowered a notch.

"But bird friend is fun!" Ty protested, still clutching several of its feathers.

"That doesn't make them safe, Ty!"

"But fun…"

Alex groaned. This was going nowhere fast.

"Alrigh', lissen up honey. I _know_ you wanna play with all the cute Pokémons. But mama has to keep you _safe_ , and she can't do that if you run off, okay?"

Ty's cheeks were puffy. His face screwed up in denial, the closest thing he offered to an answer was a brusque nod.

"And here's a lil' _promise_." Alex nudged her son. "You give mama some time, let her learn about these Pokémon things, and she'll get you your very own bird friend. How's that s-"

"Really?!" Ty didn't even let Alex finish her sentence. "Really?! Really really?!"

"Really really." Alex winked, and kissed her son on the forehead. "Now, cuddle me ya little rascal!"

Ty let out an airy giggle, and wrapped his arms around his mother's shoulders. Alex span around with her son in her arms, and made her way back to the bench where Shemmy remained. He hadn't moved since their last meeting.

"You know, Shemmy. I'm sure anyone here'd help you out if you needed it, in an instant." She said.

"But why?" Shemmy looked confused.

"Why do ya need a reason?" Alex raised her eyebrows back at him. "If someone's in trouble, ya help 'em."

"I never look at it that way," said Shemmy. "I always learn to look out for me. No one else."

"Well, we're lookin' out for you, Sugar. And we'd really like it if you'd look out for us?"

Shemmy sighed, and rose to his feet. "You said you need to learn pokémon?"

"Y…yes?" Alex's voice quivered.

"Well…" Shemmy procured a pokeball from the pocket of his hoodie. "Is something I can help with."

* * *

"Alright Makkie, take it out with another Tackle!"

"Mak!"

His Makuhita threw its bulk, silencing a Lillipup beneath it. The little dog Pokémon let out a strained whimper, before glowing a soft blue, and disintegrating into nothingness…

"Okay, another one down," Grant wiped his brow. "But it looks like we'll have to turn back soon..."

He turned back, and exchanged glances with the rest of his 'team'. The past two or three hours had seen them travelling about as many miles in search of items, and thus far, they had found absolutely nothing.

But then, Grant mused, perhaps taking a bunch of people and Pokémon with no battle experience out into the wilderness was _probably_ not the best idea.

He had learned that each Pokémon started off with one attack, a welcome relief, however they were the basic of the basic. His Makuhita knew only how to Tackle things, however Camila's Gible was no better off, Priya's Natu could at least Peck things, and Anibal's Buizel had the unusual starting move of Sonic Boom. The move wasn't the most accurate however, and his Buizel's short attention span didn't help the situation.

But Pedro's Ralts...

Growl. Nothing else. Just Growl. And that wasn't especially helpful. The most it was accomplishing was a bit of distraction, allowing for back attacks.

But even Ralts was running out of energy now. And the last thing Grant wanted was to trudge back home empty handed, a disappointing failure.

How much longer could they even keep doing this?

"Alright, we're not doing so good here." Grant's hands were at his waist. "Just a little more, then we'll call it a night?"

The others just stared at him despondently.

"You want to go back? Empty handed?" Priya squeaked up.

"Well we can't keep goin' forever, can we?" Grant gestured to his Makuhita, a fatigued mound of lethargy on the floor. "We can head back, rest up, and try again tomorrow if needed?"

His 'team-mates' shot a slew of sideways stares at each other, and Grant was _sure_ they were agreeing, even if they didn't use the words.

"Just a little bit longer, alright?" Grant raised an index finger to the group. "If we can't find anything in about ten minutes, then we'll head back home again. Fair?"

He was met with silence. Just four of them, staring blankly past him.

"...guys?" He popped an eyebrow. "Guys, did ya hear me? I said we can-"

But then he followed their gaze.

"...oh, crap."

The enormous silhouette blacked out his grounded Makuhita all but entirely. A large, muscular foot kicked the Makuhita out of the way, and snorted heavily at the small group of humans.

"Umm..." Priya gulped. "A-are we... supposed to fight this, Grant?"

"Something tells me it's not gonna let us go," Grant shrank under the sheer size of the thing. Even taller than he was, this giant, angry panda bear thing was **nothing** like the little dogs and birds that they'd encountered so far on this route!

"MOVE!" Grant yelled, and everything had to dive out of the way as the monster slammed its giant fist into the floor, _cracking_ the ground beneath it!

"...Ayaya!" Camila gasped, wrenching her little Gible out of the way as the opponent swung its arm at the pair of them. "What do we do?!"

"Don't get dead!" Grant cried, and again had to dodge the giant panda's assault. "R-right, any ideas guys?!"

"If we all attack at the same time, maybe we can confuse it?" Anibal suggested.

"But we've only got basic attacks!" Grant tried to lift his Makuhita's dead weight from the ground, "c-c'mon Makkie, get up now...? I kinda need you, okay...?"

"It is better than nothing!" Priya gulped. She glanced upwards to the tiny Natu in her hair. "N-Natu... give it a try?"

"Nah?" The little bird whistled back to her. It visibly balked at the size of the request, but nonetheless launched itself at the Pangoro, latching onto the fur on the back of its head and pecking repeatedly.

The Pangoro roared, and span around furiously in an attempt to dislodge the pecking menace. This took its focus away from its other opponents however, and next thing it knew, a Gible had Tackled it in the stomach!

Anibal's Buizel had sprung up from behind Gible, and shot a Sonic Boom into the beast's chest. This caused it to stagger backwards, and only give Gible another opportunity for a Tackle!

"C'mon Makkie, c'mon..." Grant began massaging his Makuhita's shoulders. "You can do this okay? Focus, for just a little bit longer..."

Makuhita simply grunted back at him, and made half an attempt to get back on its feet. No such luck.

"Don't you wanna get revenge on that nasty panda thing for kicking you?" Grant said, urging it back onto its feet. "You wanna kick it around for a bit instead?"

Makuhita looked no more energised.

"Or did you wanna just lie around and be useless instead? Look, even the little Ralts is trying."

Scared as it obviously was, the tiny Ralts was occasionally able to muster a squeak where a Growl should've been. To no effect, of course.

"Kuuuuuh..." Makuhita grunted again. With a wretch and a groan however, the little fat fighter found its way back to its feet.

"Alright, there ya go mate!" Grant cheered, and a little burst of energy was expelled from Makuhita as it flexed its muscles and stared 'down' its opponent.

"Graaah!" The Pangoro roared, and swatted Camila's Gible out of its way. It landed with a crunch on the ground, but remained thankfully uninjured. In knocking Gible down however, it only gave Buizel another chance to knock it sideways with another Sonic Boom!

Pangoro stumbled onto one leg, and struggled to remain in balance as Natu kept on launching painful Peck attacks into the back of its head. Its one leg was swiped from underneath it however, as ninety kilos of Makuhita crashed into it, sending the beast on a collision course with the ground!

"Tuuuu...!" Natu chirped, flitting away from Pangoro's head just in time, and it found itself grounded and vulnerable as four able bodied Pokemon faced it.

"Alright, progress!" Grant cried. "C'mon everybody! We can do this!"

Makuhita threw its bulk into Pangoro again, shunting it a few more feet across the ground, while Natu would flit past periodically, sideswiping it with a timely peck on each passing. Buizel winded the creature with another Sonic Boom, and Gible Tackled it right back towards Makuhita again, who only returned the favour.

Meanwhile, Ralts could only Growl.

"Let's finish it off!" Grant announced. "Makkie, hit it again!"

"Maku!" Makuhita exulted, and once again readied a Tackle. An enormous arm swung out of nowhere however, and squashed its advance into the ground. Gible was met with a similar fate, as Pangoro kicked it out of the way, and Natu couldn't get close enough to Peck it any more for all the flailing.

Buizel launched itself for another Sonic Boom, but a powerful hand gripped it by the tails, and reared back to its feet.

Heaving and huffing, Pangoro glared at the tiny, petrified Buizel. It was unable to do a thing as Pangoro slammed it into the ground by its tails. Once, then twice, Buizel's tiny body was smashed into the floor, and the trainers were powerless to prevent it!

"Oh, no!" Grant cried. "Quick Makkie, get up! You've gotta stop it!"

His Makuhita had all but run out of energy however. Doubled over and heaving, it could barely breathe, forget fight. Camila's Gible was out for the count too, still lying in an exhausted heap on the ground. And Natu had no chance of getting close, what with the Pangoro finally wise to its movements. It might have been small and speedy, but it was certainly no match for a giant fist.

And Pangoro continued to pummel the poor Buizel. There was another crack, and Buizel yelped as its body was peeled from the floor yet again, only to receive the same treatment moments later.

"Buizel!" Anibal let loose a slew of exotic sounding expletives. "Somebody help!"

"W-we can't!" Grant grimaced, with a vain attempt to rouse his Makuhita. "Everyone's too tired to-"

"Fwaaah!"

There was a roar of pain as the Pangoro staggered backwards, repelled by a bizarre pink wave of energy!

Buizel slipped out of its grip, and Pangoro crashed to the floor once again! The culprit causing it all this pain?

Ralts.

"What the... heck was that?!" Grant cried. "I-I thought Ralts couldn't use any attacks!"

Pedro the Brazilian simply shrugged back at him. _"Bueno?"_

 _"Si si, bueno!"_ Anibal cried back at him, _"Más, más!"_

"Yeah, do that again!" Grant encouraged obliviously, as his Makuhita once again staggered to its feet. "You okay, bro?"

"Kuuuuh..." The Makuhita grimaced, rubbing at a sore arm.

"Almost there, mate," Grant smiled at his Makuhita. "Reckon you can help finish it off?"

Another bright wave of pink soared through Pangoro's weakening body, and Natu drew blood as its beak connected with the Pangoro's eye. It issued another roar of pain, and attempted to struggle back onto its feet, however there was something anchoring it.

"Krrrrrrgh...!" Makuhita groaned, wrenching at the Pangoro's enormous body. "Kuuuhiiiiii..."

The Pangoro roared, and flailed for Makuhita about its legs, however a sharp blast of air prevented it!

"Bui!" Buizel squeaked, and gasped for another breath, just as Camila's Gible crashed into its head.

"HiiiiiiiiTAAAAAAH!" Makuhita cried, and surrendered the last of its strength. This last gasp had it wrenching Pangoro's entire body from the ground, and smashing it face-first the other side!

"Pan-goh..." The Pangoro whimpered, flailing in an attempt to get back up. The flailing soon weakened and died though, as Pangoro glowed a bright blue, and shattered into nothingness...

*clink!*

Grant and his accomplices gasped in union, as their eyes fell on an object that had spawned from nowhere. Small and bottle-shaped, it appeared to be a glass jar of some kind, with a liquid inside?

"What's... this?" Grant queried, picking up the tiny bottle and frowning at it. "Little... perfume bottle or something?"

"It is a Burn Heal... I think?" Priya adjusted her glasses.

"All that work, for a Burn Heal." Anibal grimaced. "Buizel got hurt so much... for that?"

"Ohh, guys, you don't realise what this means?" Grant was strangely enough jumping for joy. "This means we've succeeded in our mission! Sure, we won't be getting much from this I don't think, but now we know how to get more stuff! And then we can sell that stuff and use it to buy stuff we actually need! It's a _start!_ "

His companions didn't share his enthusiasm.

"And I've gotta say, we made a bloody good team out there?" He once again tried to enthuse. "We took on that big bugger, and _won_!"

He raised one of his shovel-like hands into the air as celebration, but after literally no one reacted to his prompt, the moment kinda... passed.

"Ahh, well..." he chuckled. "C'mon you guys. Let's get back to the village and tell everyone the good news!"


	8. Despawn

Their triumphant return was a far mure muted affair than Grant would have liked. All that effort, all of that pain... for a single Burn Heal?

He had to laugh at the irony.

And the adoring fans?

Busy with their own things. Ivan the Russian was carving some shapes out of wood as his Tyrogue simply meditated, while Frenchman Michel appeared to be entertaining a blonde girl whose name Grant couldn't remember. She and her little Bug type seemed completely enamoured at his fluffy dog thing, and even Grant couldn't help but feel charmed by the little tan and white ball of floof as it bounced around furiously with a leaf. It and a few others had gotten stuck in the dog's fur, and were a source of both aggravation and amusement. But neither party shared the other's notions, it seemed.

Then there was a sudden and loud crack!

Grant span around to find the most unusual scrum, consisting of Alex's Kangaskhan and Shemmy's Cranidos. The latter had just used its giant head to charge Kangaskhan, who was defending with its fists. But still Cranidos insisted on charging, and built up a little cloud of dust behind them both as it edged its opponent back.

"K-kanga!" Alex still hadn't learned its proper name. "Fight back w-with your Punchy... thing?"

Her Kangaskhan gave her an almost purring sort of noise, and then began jabbing the Cranidos in the side of the head with a series of light punches. Shemmy muttered back an instruction at his Cranidos, who shook Kangaskhan's shovel-hands away, tucked itself lower still, and simply kept on charging. Its head connected with Kangaskhan's knee, and both were visibly pained as Kangaskhan was swept back a few feet.

"O-o-okay!" Alex's feet stamped about impatiently, "I wan- I want you to, try another-"

But Kangaskhan had better ideas. Using its ridiculous height advantage over Cranidos, it stared its opponent down with an evil looking glare. A bead of sweat trickled down Cranidos' face, and Kangaskhan took advantage of this half a second to jab it in side one, two, three times!

Caught off guard, Cranidos couldn't defend the attack nearly as well, and was launched into the air by the impact. The Little rock dinosaur made an odd grunting noise as it bounced across the floor, and Kangaskhan was ready to give chase when the Cranidos turned a bright blue...

And was sucked back into its pokeball.

"...is enough." Shemmy still refused to show interest. "Your Kanga learning quick."

"She is?" Alex shared an equally surprised stare with her Kanga. "Wha-wha-how'd y'all know?!"

"It learn and use new attack already," Shemmy folded his arms. "Don't know English name. It make scary with angry stare."

"Ohh, you mean the thing where she went 'uuuuuuhhh...'," Alex mimicked her Kangaskhan's 'angry stare'. "And then hit your rocky buddy really hard?"

Shemmy simply nodded in response.

"Ohh, you're such a clever girl!" Alex started fawning over the eight foot tall monster. "With the punchy punchy and the angry stare and the- huh?"

She broke the 'high' five when she noticed her audience. "...how long have y'all been standin' there?"

"Long long time, Mama," Ty chipped in at her side.

"Eheh, a fair bit," Grant didn't see a point in lying. "...so you're umm, bonding?"

"Well, uhh, I umm," Alex spluttered. "Yeah we are! My Kanga is such a smart girl! Why she's super strong, and _tall_ , and this is a real violent game don't y'all know?"

Grant simply smiled and nodded. This was the first time he'd seen Alex genuinely happy since they'd arrived here. No worrying about other people, or stressed about her situation, or anything. He couldn't spoil that moment, now that she was pretty much glowing with excitement.

She then extended a hand to her reluctant accomplice. "Thank ya, Cookie,"

"...Cookie?" Shemmy was brusque.

"Yeah, Cookie!" Alex wrung his arm. "Cause ya made my day a lil' sweeter."

And he couldn't help himself. Try as he might suppress it, a smile touched at the young man's lips. Even teeth were visible.

"...Okay, I like Cookie."

"Yeah you do!" Alex curled a fist. "I-is your little rocky guy al-"

"Mama, I want cookies."

And Alex hung her head. She'd said the magic word.

"What was that, Ty?"

"I want cookies _please_?"

"A'right, Mama'll see what she can do," Alex ruffled her boy's hair. "You like coffee Shemmy?"

The Pole merely shrugged in response.

"I'll put lotsa sugar in it for ya," Alex chuckled, and headed off back to her little chalet, with her boy on her hip and her Kangaskhan in tow. Shemmy trudged a noted few metres behind her.

"...well then!" Grant still had the Burn Heal in his hands. "Let's go see how much this is worth, huh guys?"

He spun the little glass aerosol off of one finger, and flipped it into the air;

*plock*

The remnants of a Teddiursa shattered away into the blue as Caitlyn Browne picked up her latest spoils.

"A'right, another Ice Heal. You doin' okay, Leon?"

"Rrowr?"

Her clumsy Litleo acknowledged her in typical fashion, by spinning around once in excitement and tripping over its own feet.

"That's a good boy..." she managed a smile, scratching at the little lion's belly. After being informed by a friendly neighbour - another yank, judging by the accent - she and many others had gotten to 'work' silencing the local wild population.

What a Teddiursa was even doing in a swamp... she wasn't sure. But the poor thing didn't last long against her Leon, who simply pummelled it with repeated Tackling. Trees and rocks made those Tackles all the more effective, she'd found out.

"Okay Leon," she returned her attention to the Litleo. "Whaddya say we find one more item, and then-

-ahh, Christ."

It looked like her day's haul would have to remain at two Ice Heals and a Super Potion. For in the ten seconds she had taken to look away from her Litleo and instead survey her surroundings, little Leon had taken it upon himself to get as messy as fecking possible.

"Mrah?" Leon mewled through the half inch of slime he'd gotten covered in. Caitlyn waded into the sludgy mess, and held him at arm's length.

"Right you, home time," she grimaced at him. "Hey, Arly? Y'about?"

Voices carried strangely well through swampland, Caitlyn had found out. It took a moment for a response, though...

"It's Aurelie, not Arly! But yes, I'm here!"

"Sorry! I can't pronounce yer name!" Caitlyn called back. "Hey listen, Leon's gotten himself covered in shite, so I'll have to go clean him up. You gonna be okay out here by yerself?"

"Oh, I won't be out much longer neither," Aurelie's answer came with a vast illumination and a crackle of electricity. "So I'll probably seeya in a while, yeah?"

"Right, sounds good," Caitlyn squelched across the marshland, a filthy Leon squirming between her hands. "Right you. Bath time."

The area Caitlyn had been saddled with was a small village with the honestly terrible name of 'east town'. As best she could figure, the swampland in the south east was the safest place to start training, simply because it was just a short walk - maybe half a mile? - from the village itself. At the opposite end there was a lake, maybe three or four miles from the village, and an absolutely enormous forest dominated the rest of the land north of her. Other trainers might have been more appreciative of it, maybe even found a sense of adventure about it, but she herself... saw darkness, danger, and tripping over tree roots. No. Not fun.

The village itself? Lovely! A power of stonewall cabins with thatched rooves, with a central row of shops separating the southern and northern sides. Her other neighbours varied in age from barely double figures to mid-twenties it seemed, and stretched from the US to France to east Asia. Aurelie, also known as that girl with the name she couldn't pronounce, was a year younger than herself, and had picked a house right opposite her. Her Shinx and Caitlyn's Litleo instantly bonded by means of wrestling, and thus they were pretty much forced to.

But that was okay! Unlike another yank she didn't want to think about, Aurelie seemed polite and well mannered. Almost too much so. It was almost like they were-

"Hey, lady. I'm hungry."

...and her happy bubble shattered. Oh yeah. That.

"Can'cha see I'm busy right now?" Caitlyn glared at her 'neighbour' as she walked past.

"Well yeah, but you said you'd feed me, remember?" The blonde irritation hung out of his window.

"And you said ye'd train yer Klink." Caitlyn held her struggling Litleo closer to her chest, more out of principle than anything. The mud would wash off.

"But you can't train on an empty stomach!" He protested.

"Shoulda t'ought of that before you stayed indoors all day," Caitlyn made a point of shoving her door open. "Now I'm givin' m'Litleo here a bath. Should take about half an hour. You get yourself out there and start trainin' by the time I'm done, or ye can forget about me cookin' fer ye, ye shitey gremlin. Am I clear?"

She couldn't lie. A little burst of pride did rise within her as she closed the door on Max and his 'demands'. He remained staring, open mouthed and gormless, long after she had disappeared down the road and closed the door.

Life eventually returned to the blonde cunningly disguised as a heavy sigh. He visibly deflated against his window sill.

"Auuuuugggggghhhh?!" He dug his fingers into his hair. Why was this all so hard?! Why wouldn't anyone listen to him?! Of all the people in the world, why did it have to be him who got landed with this stinking 'experiment'?! Between Maine and California, there were literally millions of others! If his Grampa knew anything about this, he would've been out of here in a second.

But no! His foot connected with the already embattled armchair. He had to suffer alone, with no one to help him!

Max had learned today that walls were painful. Especially those made out of rock. But as his knuckles blistered the granite, his Klink remained unresponsive, and no one came to his aid, first or otherwise.

"It's not, fair!" He bundled himself into one corner of the room. Bitten fingernails about ready to claw his face off, he sobbed, "It's not fair, it's not fair, it's, not, F-"

"What's not fair?" A voice.

"Agh?!" Max shrieked at the intrusion, only to spy a blue-haired stranger peering in at him. Blue was a strange hair colour. This woman was obviously a rebellious lowlife, one he should keep his distance-

"Havin' a bad day?" She asked brightly. Her accent was familiar! She was from home! She must've been!

Max drew out a sob. "...where are you from? Wisconsin?"

The blue haired woman's eye twitched. "...nope. Think more north."

"Wh-what's more north than Wisconsin?" He was already at a loss.

"Canada ya bum!" The woman rolled her eyes.

"...oh," humility reached him at last. "S-sorry."

"Ohh, that's alright!" A hand reached in, and ruffled his hair. _Touched_ his _head_. "Don't worry about it, you wouldn't be the first today. It's 'cause I'm not wearing the plaid shirt and fighting bears I'm sure, eh?!"

"Sure," Max sunk back down. Whatever that was supposed to be, it definitely wasn't funny. Where was the punchline?

"...so yeah, what's not fair?" The woman reiterated, to Max's dismay.

"That woman, that... that other woman. The skinny one with the fire cat," he said, pointing vaguely ahead of himself. "She promised she'd cook for me, but she hasn't! And I'm hungry, darn it!"

"Oh dear, that is a problem," this woman's voice held no jeer. Light, friendly, even inviting. "Did you promise her something in return?"

"W-well..." Max shifted his gaze towards the opposite wall. "N-no, no I didn't! And now she's giving her stupid fire cat a bath and leaving me to starve!"

She giggled at his melodrama. "I think it's pretty unlikely she'd cook for you for free, y'know? Supplies are kinda limited, so... How're _your_ supplies, by the way? What have you found today?"

If it were possible, Max coiled ever tighter into himself. "...haven't."

"You haven't?" The blue haired woman raised a pale eyebrow. "Well that's silly of ya, isn't it? How're you gonna survive without supplies?"

"...don't know." Despite himself, Max could feel the prickle of tears. Hot and stingy, they threatened to roll down his cheeks and expose him...

"Tell ya what. I reckon my Cleo still has enough in the tank for a couple more battles. Wanna come with? I can show you-"

"-I know how."

"Alright then, this shouldn't be a problem then! You say you know how to battle? Prove it. Come train with me a bit. Where's your Pokémon?"

Max grimaced, and buried his head back in the corner of the wall, however his Klink came floating by, as if it knew it was needed.

"Aww, see?" The woman's eyes lit up at the sight. "Your little metal buddy wants to help too! Given it a name yet?"

Max shook his head fervently.

"Uh huh. And you? Got a name?"

"M-M-Max,"

"Alright MuhmuhMax, get on out here and train with me!"

Max glared at her. What once was tears and guilt was now angry bile, percolating within.

"Don't mock me, please."

"Alright then, c'mon crybaby, get your ass out here and train already!"

"I said DON'T mock me please!" Max threw clenched fists to the ground.

"Learn to laugh, MuhmuhMax!" The blue haired woman grinned as he opened his door. "I'm Aurerelelelie, the tree choppin' Mountie from up north. And we're training, yah?"

"Yeah yeah..." Max made a point of dragging his shoes in the mud. "Come, Klink."

His little Klink sparked to attention, and began to etch after its trainer's reluctant footfalls.

* * *

"Rowrr?!"

Leon flailed, and splashed swampy bath water everywhere.

"Auuughh!" Caitlyn flinched away from her fiery tsunami of a Pokémon. "Oh, ye little monster you! C'mere, lemme clean ye."

One strong hand grappled with the ball of energy, while another attacked it with a scrubbing sponge.

"We're almost done, a'right?" Caitlyn swerved out of the way as more bath water was splashed at her. "So you just sit tight fer a moment, and let me get the last of this crap offaye. Then we can settle down for the night, how's that sound?"

"Hey KitKat, how's things?"

"Ehh?" Both Caitlyn and her Litleo made identical confused faces at the direction of the voice. "Ar...ally?!" Her tongue still struggled with that damn unpronounceable name. "You're still outside? I woulda thought you'd settled in for the night by now?"

"Ohh, I just figured I'd watch for a minute. Who's giving who a bath now?"

Caitlyn glanced to her Litleo, who stared back. Of the two, it was a tough one deciding who was more soaked. "Good point," she grinned, and splashed at her blue haired neighbour, who had just enough time to swerve out of the way.

"Eewwww! Heyyy, no fair!"

"Hunh? Who's that?" Caitlyn frowned.

"Ohh, that's right. This little Yankee Doodle!" She dragged Max into the frame. "Is training with me for a while."

Aurelie cupped a hand beside her mouth, "I don't think he knows how!"

Max flailed at her. "I heard that, woman! I do too know how!"

Aurelie continued her 'whisper', "I don't think he knows what a joke is either!"

"Yes I do! You're just not funny!"

Caitlyn gave a chuckle at the pair of them. "You sure your Shinx is up for it?"

Leon sneezed, and the flame on his head reignited. "Mraah?"

"Well someone's gotta make sure MuhmuhMax here keeps his end of the promise!" Aurelie's stare was somehow manic and intimidating at the same time. "After all, you don't wanna end up starved and pecked to death by Murkrow, do ya?"

"Nnnot really," Max's attempts to wrench his arm away were proving futile. "But nor do I anticipate having my slave animal beat others to death either."

"Y'know, you know a loooootta long words for an eight year old," Aurelie frowned at him, and Caitlyn forced down a splutter in the background.

"I'm eleven and a _half_!" Max balled his fists up at her.

"Okay then, Mr eleven-and-a-half, time to start being responsible for yourself!" Aurelie let go of his arm at last, which he promptly thrust behind him. "I was helpin' out in my uncle's store when I was your age. And you don't even wanna earn your food for the day?"

"I shouldn't have to! I'm only a kid!" Tears shone in Max's eyes once again.

"But we're in a world without parents, Maxxy," Aurelie's voice was for once serious. She knelt down to face him properly, "and when there aren't any grown ups, sometimes you have to step up and be one. Now did you wanna give me a hand?"

"...Maxxy," he sobbed. "Only my grampa calls me Maxxy."

Aurelie balked. "I, umm... d-did I say the wrong thing? If so, I-I-"

"-okay."

Aurelie flinched as if standing on a pebble, however she quickly recovered, and placed her two hands on his shoulders.

"You made a really grown up decision today, Max," she gave him a genuine smile. "Now, if KitKat here is willing, maybe we can all train together for a bit?"

Caitlyn sighed, her sopping wet Litleo wriggling about in her arms. "Sure, got nothin' better to do. But maybe not the swamp this time? I don't wanna give Leon another bath..."

"Alllrighty then!" Aurelie grinned, and stepped back away from the window. "That enough room?"

"...for what?" Caitlyn looked positively bewildered.

"To climb out, of course! C'mon KitKat, the night ain't young!"

"And whaddya think I am, a feckin' chimp? I'll take the sane way, t'ank you!"

Meanwhile Max wasn't far short of horrified. "...I'm surrounded by crazy people."

And the redhead had to chase after her manic Litleo for several minutes, in a poor attempt to dry the thing with a towel before they left the house. Him scorching one of the only two towels she had didn't help her mood, either. But a cleverly timed pounce had Leon pinned between his owner's arms, where she scrubbed his skin raw. There was overkill, and then there was the principal of it all.

"Right," Caitlyn burst through her door at last, holding a bone dry Litleo to her chest, "I take it you two're ready?"

"Yup!" Aurelie piped up. "Now you me and Maxxy are gonna train for a bit more! Aren't we MuhmuhMax?"

If an answer was expected of him, he didn't have chance to give it, as the blue haired crazy lady merely grabbed his arm and dragged him, following Caitlyn's apparent lead. Her Shinx and his Klink took up the rear.

* * *

A small pile of coins jingled into her hands. "Is that all, Miss?"

"U-umm, yes, sorry," Priya shared an awkward smile with the 'NPC' cashier, as Anibal had labelled her beforehand. She carried away their 'spoils', as the same young man stepped out from behind the shelves of assorted merchandise.

"How much did you get?"

"Umm..." she hastily counted up the unfamiliar coins in her hand, "...one hundred and twenty five?"

"That is not much..." Anibal stroked his stubble. After he and Priya grimaced at the price tags on the basic food items, they shared a daunted glance. So much work, so much risking of life... for a candy bar?"

The door to the pokeshop veemed shut, and Anibal rubbed at the bridge of his nose. " _Problema grande..._ "

"What's a grand day?" Grant popped up obliviously. "Our winnings worth much?"

Anibal sighed. "We got one hundred twenty five. Rage Candy Bar? One Hundred."

"Oh bloody Jesus..." Grant had to take a step back. "So we did all of that for half a snack?"

"Half a snack shared five ways," Anibal twisted the knife further. "A question, Senor. Why did you ask me and Priya to sell item, when you are better speaking English?"

"W-well..." The Australian stammered. "First off, I think it'd help you both, as you're pretty good with English, yet not quite perfect, and-"

He glanced around to meet with two unconvinced faces.

"Aw who'm I kidding? I didn't wanna risk going in that tiny shop and breaking everything."

"There was... lots of space in there, Grant," Priya squeaked up.

"And you are only little bit taller than me," Anibal prodded.

"Trust me, I'm amazingly clumsy," Grant seemed almost proud. "I can just look at things and they break sometimes."

"But what if you are on your own?" Anibal frowned.

"Well, I'd take the chance in that situation," said Grant with a shrug. "But it's not just my money. It's all of ours, so I don't wanna risk losing-"

" _Monsieur Grant, Monsieur Grant!_ " A voice out of nowhere.

The big Australian spun around to find French boy Michel charging him down, all a-panic. "Huh?"

"Whoa whoa..." his shovel hands were a vain attempt at calming the Frenchman, "Problem?"

" _Oui, oui! C'est un probleme enorme!_ " Michel cawed, " _Ou est Alex!?_ "

"Alex?" Grant quizzed, his bemusement mounting. "Anyone here speak French?"

Blank looks from Priya and Anibal told him all he needed. "Al-alright, come this way Michel, I'll take you to her."

Hand gestures were the bridge across the language barrier, and an utterly hysterical Michel kept about an inch away from him, his eyes bulging and arms shaking viciously.

"I'll uhh, deal with this?" Grant tried to shake off his confusion. "Camilla and Pedro are off that way somewhere, can you guys let them know what happened?"

"Y-yes, okay!" Priya quivered at him, and he dashed off without another word, Michel hot on his trail.

The village was deathly silent. Not even a breath of wind as he and Michel crunched across the gravelled paths towards Alex's little flat. He vaguely recalled that she had promised that Shemmy bloke a coffee, so it stood to reason that she'd still be there.

*knock-a-knock!* his large fist rapped at her embattled doorframe. "Hey Alex, y'in there? Need to talk a sec?"

Grant raised an index finger at Michel, a call for patience. Quivering like a fallen leaf, the French boy was clammier than a sinner in church. The poor thing looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"Just a second sweetie!" Alex's sing-song voice called, and there was a scraping of wood before the young woman appeared in her doorway, cookie-plied youngster on her hip.

"Somethin' wrong?"

"Y-yeah," Grant began. "See, I've got that French boy Michel here, and-"

" _Alex!_ " Michel simply barged into the conversation. " _Alex, aider moi! C'est terrible! Un probleme grande_!"

" _Probleme grande...?_ " Alex echoed him. " _Okay okay, calmez vous! Quel est... votre, probleme_?"

And what started off as a sunny smile soon weathered into a confused frown, and then a horrified stare as Michel explained his situation. Ty had long forgotten his cookie, and even Shemmy looked vaguely concerned from inside Alex's sitting room. Enough to turn his head and acknowledge the conversation at least.

" _Angelique, la fille Belge, elle est peur, et mon Ponchiot,_ " he drew out a sob;

" _Mon Ponchiot c'est mort!_ "


	9. PvP

_"M-mort?"_

Alex backed into the doorframe, _"êtes-vous... sûr?"_

And little Michel soon dissolved into loud sobs. Alex held the boy to her chest, a look of pure horror blossoming across her face.

"Grant... with all this fightin' an' battlin', these Pokémons get... hurt, right?"

"W-well yeah, I guess?" Grant shrugged. "But there was always machines that kept 'em healthy, you know?"

"W-well what if all this battling was too much?" Alex chose her words carefully, "would it be possible for one of these lil' guys to... d-die?"

"Die?" Grant's eyes widened. "Well uhh... I never saw it happen in the games? Maybe in the cartoon?"

"Scary videos on internet," Shemmy added. "But those not legit."

"W-well that's what Michel here is sayin'," Alex held the boy tight. "His... Ponchiot, whatever that is, got beat up by some others. It then turned all blue like, and... disappeared?"

"Disappeared?" Grant gulped. That was exactly what happened to the Pokémon be and the others had defeated earlier. Just shattered away into nothing.

"A-alright, thanks for telling me!" He stammered. "We've gotta let everyone else know!"

Before anyone could respond, Grant and his enormous feet were galloping away back into the centre of the town, flailing his arms at anyone who would give him a moment's attention;

"Hey everyone, I've got important news!"

* * *

With an etch and a twitch, the little Klink slowly squeezed victory from its opponent. The idling Pidgey was powerless to stop Klink's vicegrip, which had the bird squashed between its two gears. A pained gurgle, and the Pidgey burst into tiny blue sparkles, leaving behind a happy looking Klink, a few feathers and... another pokeball?

"Ooh, you got a spare!" Aurelie encouraged. "Good work, MuhmuhMax! See? Ain't so hard, is it?"

"I never said it was..." Max grumbled at Aurelie and her exuberance. "I just didn't really wanna do it."

"Don't really wanna what, earn your own food? Caitlyn frowned at him. "C'mon kid, y'aren't gonna survive otherwise. Ye can't just expect adults to look after you all the time."

"Yah, and don'cha feel even a little bit proud?" Aurelie wrapped herself around Caitlyn's shoulders, prompting a confused look from the redhead. "That's three things you've defeated now!"

"Oh yes, the two useless birds and the tadpole thing," Max deadpanned. "What an impressive haul."

"Oh hey, it's a start," Aurelie nudged him. "Besides, you've done enough to earn some food for the night. Right KitKat?"

Caitlyn shrugged. "Promise is a promise. Wanna lend a hand, Arly?"

"Err, sure! If you like fire?" Aurelie smiled.

"Ye mean... like spicy?"

"Like burned to a crisp."

"...ah," Caitlyn deflated. "Well, you can share some ingredients. Sound fair? Meal for t'ree?"

"Well sure, just as long as Maxxy doesn't mind!" Aurelie ruffled the blonde's hair.

"Nyaaaah! Getoff!" Max flailed at her. "I'm a boy, not a dog!"

"Aww, and here I was gonna feed him treats..." Aurelie scoffed. "Anyway! We heading back?"

A timely stomach grumble from Caitlyn answered the question for her. Max returned his Klink to its pokeball, while the two girls simply carried their respective felines. Aurelie's Shinx was better behaved than Caitlyn's Litleo by a margin, as the latter of whom squirmed and writhed, desperate to run free. Cleo on the other hand actually listened to its trainer, nestled between her arms and purring contentedly.

"Any idea what you'd want to eat for dinner?" Caitlyn poked at conversation. Max remained in a sullen silence, while Aurelie seemed distracted by their surroundings.

"Well, we've got a couple miles to go, so unless ye wanna hear me yammer about nothin', I'd suggest startin' some kinda con-"

"-hey look, people!" Aurelie's arm thrust right through Caitlyn's sentence, silencing her and spooking Max. "Other people! Wanna go see them?!"

Caitlyn deflated. "...alright then. We'll do that."

The two young women ventured away from the forest trail back to their village - Max pointedly lagging behind them both - and instead into what could've been mistaken for a play park. A single lonely swing creaked to itself in one corner of an otherwise empty but pleasant expanse of flat, green grass. Caitlyn could practically see the chalk lines of a sports pitch getting laid down by some lads, desperate for recreation. And while that atrocity hadn't yet taken place, there was by chance a surprising number of teenagers gathered in this little secret. The group seemed to have gathered on the premise of getting to know one another, Caitlyn was happy to find an array of Pokémon among them, including a Drifloon, Phanpy, Roggenrola, and some weird angry looking weasel thing she couldn't name.

"W-wow, that's a lot of people!" Aurelie exclaimed. "Can we go meet 'em? Can we can we?"

"I t'ought we were gonna eat?" Caitlyn frowned. "They'll still be here later... probably. We can eat first, and then come ba-"

"Awww, just for a little while?" Aurelie pleaded. Why was she so enthusiastic?

"...can your stomach wait another ten minutes, kiddo?"

"I'll give ya a hug?" Aurelie 'encouraged'.

"Ugh..." Max groaned. "Promise you won't, and I don't mind staying for a bit-"

"Yay!" Aurelie beamed, and squashed the young boy between her arms.

"Heyyy! I said promise you won't hug me!" He flailed.

"That was a cuddle." Aurelie poked out her tongue, and the three entered the secluded field proper.

"Well well, more people!"

It didn't take long for someone to notice their arrival. Just as soon as they'd emerged from the trees, they were greeted by some poshly dressed skinny wank with a pompous haircut.

"Good evening ladies," he bowed so low that Caitlyn could've sworn he'd snapped in half. "Nigel _Bouquet_ , originally from England. Yourselves?"

"Caitlyn. Ireland." The redhead raised an eyebrow at his manicured hand.

"Ooh, Ireland!" _Nigel_ was strangely enthusiastic, "Northern, I am correct in assuming?"

"Nope," Caitlyn shot him down. "Actual Ireland. The other bit."

"O-oh..." Nigel's exuberance failed him for all of a moment.

"Say, that's a fancy surname you got!" Aurelie injected her own brand of fervency into the conversation. "Aurelie, Canada! How was it you spelled your name?"

Caitlyn balked in the background, as Nigel ticked off fingers, "B-U-C-K-E-T. Bouquet."

And Caitlyn turned the other way. He was one of _those_...

"Isn't that Bucket?" Aurelie frowned.

"Ohoho, I'm afraid not my dear," Nigel's voice sharpened. "I wouldn't associate with such a common name, of that I can assure-"

"A'right, that's it," Caitlyn balled a fist. "Before y'insult someone, lemme ask what you're all doin' in the middle of the woods at this time o'night? Makes no feckin' sense."

"W-well..." Nigel was taken aback. "We're just... looking around, I suppose? Isn't that what one does when they're in an unfamiliar area?"

"So ye crowd together inside a forest?" Caitlyn sent Aurelie a tacit beckon.

"Yeah, it does seem kinda weird..." The Canadian agreed.

"Can we _go_ now?" Max reminded them all of his existence. "You owe me a dinner, remember Red?"

"Watch the names, squirt," Caitlyn growled back at him. "But yeah, he's right. I've got a meal to prep-"

"A meal? How splendid! We were just readying one for ourselves!" Nigel flounced. "Would you care to join us?"

"Would I?!" Max had already shot forward.

"Well I meant, umm..." Nigel blanked at him, however the young American wasn't to be discouraged from a free meal. Caitlyn and Aurelie simply exchanged a glance. A meal was a meal after all, and they tasted even better when you didn't have to cook it yourself.

* * *

"Ohh, so you're American!"

"...Tho?" Max muffled through a full mouthful of various foods.

"Oh no no, nothing. It just explains a lot, that's all," Nigel dismissed. His smile was nauseating.

"But yeah, you're all from the northern side of the village?" Aurelie stabbed a fork into her vegetables. "That big apartment complex?"

"Y-yes, and we have a marvellous view of the mountains to the south," Grant winked. "Plus, if you're ever wanting a cup of sugar, I shall happily oblige."

Caitlyn shuddered. "Ye know, ye still haven't explained what you're all doin' in the middle of the woods. Y'even prepared a meal out here. Are yer flats really that shite?"

"You know, you're far too cynical for an Irish," Nigel frowned, and Caitlyn ground her knuckles underneath the picnic table. "Whatever happened to the happy-go-lucky Irish people from the cartoons?"

"...reality." Caitlyn deadpanned. "Got any more stereotypes? Use 'em up now, and maybe we can have a decent conversation."

Nigel sighed. "Well I suppose. Our living quarters are indeed plentiful, but there is little in terms of amenities. So when, and I do hope I'm pronouncing her name correctly, Jang... Lee?"

His arm hovered towards a petite, dark haired figure at the other end of the table. She met his gaze, and then went back to her soup.

"...don't t'ink she likes ye much." Caitlyn's mouth stretched thinner.

"Ohh, she just isn't all that sociable, I'm sure!" Nigel waved her away, oblivious to the conversation Jiang Li had just started with another girl. "But yes, our Chinese friend over there stumbled across this lovely picnic area here whilst training, isn't that correct?"

Jiang Li remained animated, her back turned to him.

"Uh huh," Caitlyn's cheek dimpled. "I... suppose ye'll be wanting some form of payment for all this food?"

"Oh, perish the thought!" Nigel flailed an arm, barely an inch from Caitlyn's face. "I could never ask you to do that, dear Catherine!"

"...Caitlyn," the redhead corrected him. "And I'll t'ank ye not to call me 'dear', if ye don't-"

However, attention had been diverted elsewhere by the sudden gathering of teenagers towards the centre of the field.

Pokeball in hand, one boy grinned. "Y'know, ever since we got these little guys, there's been something I've been itching to try!"

The girl nearest him raised an eyebrow. "...what is that?"

The young man stamped his feet, ecstatic. "Well we're Pokemon trainers! And what do Pokemon trainers do?!"

"Train... Pokémon?" The girl's accent bounced.

"Noo, it means we battle!" Her 'acquaintance' shouted, wielding his poke ball as if it were a shot-put. "And this is me officially challenging you! Whaddya say?!"

The brunette shot him down instantly. "That's silly. We barely know them. And there are wild Pokémon to train against."

"They'll be fine, don't worry!" Her blonde challenger attempted some reassurance.

"I would rather get to know mine first?" She countered. "Instead of just making them beat each other up like mindless slaves."

"Hey! They're not mindless! They can think for themselves, even when battling!" The blonde boy's gaze eroded slightly. "...what's your name, anyway?"

"Chloe," the girl responded. "Why do you even want to-"

"Alright then! Chloe, I'm Adam, and I wanna battle you! We'll take it easy, alright?"

"Fine then..." Chloe sighed, heaving a poke all from the tote bag on her shoulder. "Come on out, Pebbles."

She pressed the button on her capsule, and suddenly her Pokémon appeared in a flash of bright red light. With two tiny feet, a mostly ovular body, and a central yellow 'face', this Pokémon was identified as a Roggenrola.

"Okay, now we're talkin'!" Adam was exultant. Turning his baseball cap backwards, in a fashion he had obviously copied from somewhere else, Adam threw his poke ball towards Chloe. "I choose you, Patrick!"

Chloe could only muster a confused stare as Adam's capsule split open in a burst of bright red light. It bounced back to him, and left behind a tiny creature. Most of its body seemed to consist of a shell, decorated with red and blue triangle shapes.

"Togiiii!" 'Patrick' squeaked, waving its tiny arms around to celebrate the freedom.

"Heh. Alright! We'll just have a few attacks each, alright?" Adam suggested. "They still won't know their own strength yet, so they could probably hurt each other."

"O-okay then," Chloe was slightly more enthusiastic now that the boy opposite her was showing an ounce of restraint. "Now, what moves do you know...?"

She studied her watch for a moment, 'pointing' it at her Roggenrola. "Pebbles, I want you to try Tackle on that Togepi, okay?"

Her Roggenrola clicked a few times in response, and began shuffling towards the opposing Togepi on its two little feet. A sudden burst of speed, and BAM, the Roggenrola threw its rock-hard body at Togepi. Togepi squeaked as Roggenrola collided with it, and rolled backwards off of its feet.

"Oop, careful there Patrick!" Adam chuckled, and helped the tiny Togepi get level again. "You wanna try an attack for me, little guy?"

"Togiiiii~" the Togepi sang back in response.

"Atta boy..." Adam cheered on his Togepi. "Now, let's give it a Charm offensive, huh? Reckon you can?"

"P-rii?" The Togepi murmured to itself. It eyed its trainer curiously, then its opponent, dancing obliviously to itself a couple of feet away, and then its opponent's trainer.

"Tog-i..." Togepi mumbled. "Prii!" It then squeaked suddenly, spinning into what looked like an attempt at dancing, with its little arms outstretched. Before promptly falling over.

The Roggenrola opposite it visibly blushed, and even young Chloe looked charmed by Togepi's display.

"Aww, you're mean! How can I hurt it now?" She teased.

"Hey, if anything that's a good thing, right?" Adam shrugged. "Alright Togepi, give your Metronome a try!"

"Huh? Hey?!" Chloe gasped. "That's not fair! It was my turn!"

"Sorry!" Adam cackled. "I just saw opportunity and took it!"

"Grr..." Chloe growled. "Alright then. If you're going to play it that way... Pebbles! Stop Togepi with another Tackle!"

Roggenrola clicked in response, and once again shuffled towards the Togepi. It threw itself forward once again, only for Togepi to evade the attack by bouncing into the air!

Adam fell over laughing.

"...always a fun move." He chuckled, catching sight of the tiny creature several feet up. "Reckon you can land it, Paddy?!"

"Defend, Pebbles!" Chloe called, and her Roggenrola responded in kind, tucking its little feet into itself and becoming more compact. Togepi's Bounce crested over the top of it, and crashed down, with a light sleeping noise as Togepi inevitably bounced off of Roggenrola's tough shell, and rolled away across the floor.

"Whooooa, Patrick! Careful buddy!" Adam's hand stopped Togepi from rolling off somewhere dangerous.

"Okay Pebbles," Chloe knelt down to check on her Roggenrola. More or less unharmed by the Togepi's weak attack. That was good. "Now, I want you to try another Tackle for me."

Her Roggenrola clicked twice, and hopped from foot to foot. A slow waddle forwards, and suddenly Togepi was assaulted with a sharp Headbutt!

"Pah?!" The little egg squeaked, and Chloe lit up in response.

"A-and another Tackle! Go!" She cried, before Togepi could so much as move. Roggenrola again threw its body into Togepi, which was knocked to the ground, scattering up a little dust cloud.

But again the resilient little egg found its feet.

"Okay, roll the dice again Patrick! Another Metronome!"

Togepi chirruped back at its trainer, and began waggling its finger in the air.

"Pebbles, stop it with a Headbutt!" Chloe ordered, and the Roggenrola stumbled forwards once again. It couldn't get there fast enough however, as a bright light had already started to build inside of Togepi.

"Ooh, ooh!" Adam couldn't hide his excitement. Solar Beam? Moonblast? Maybe even Luster Purge? Even Flash would be useful!

"Togiii..." Togepi focused, concentrating the light energy towards its torso. It was so bright that people had to cover their eyes.

"Priii!" Togepi's little hand danced. Suddenly, the sound of a vase smashing, and a huge wave of energy blasted across the ground, knocking both trainers back and engulfing poor Roggenrola.

"Hagh?! Pebbles!" Chloe gasped, scrambling back to her feet as the mushroom cloud rose a few feet into the air, followed by a layer of choking black smoke.

"Pfeh! Ack! Ahack!" Adam waved it away, kneeling down to assess his Togepi. "I-I think we should wrap this one up, huh?"

Chloe simply nodded, and waded though the smoke to extract her battered Roggenrola from it. It had sustained a few chips here and there, but nothing substantial. Chloe held the little thing to her chest, and it whirred quietly as a response.

"Ooh, there's a cliché for ye." Caitlyn wasn't watching the whole of the battle, of course she wasn't. And as Adam wafted yet more smoke away, she did find herself smirking. After all, compared to poshy dullboy over here, the battle was far more entertaining.

"A-alright Patrick, where are you...?" Adam couldn't hide that quiver in his voice as his hand swept the ground. "You've gotta be around here somewhere-OW!"

He recoiled like he'd been bitten. Blood trickled down his index finger, and fear prickled down his spine.

"What... the?" He frowned, teaching carefully into the thinning smoke to extract a sharp fragment of something?

It was off white in colour, and patterned on one side with a blue... triangle?

The bottom fell out of his stomach. Acrid bile surged, and he scrabbled across the ground, finding only more fragments. His hands were getting more and more bloodied, but despite his efforts, he was picking up pieces. And nothing more.

"P-Patrick!" Adam spluttered, examining the ground to find a scorch mark where a little Togepi once was. His dirty knees fell to the floor, and furious tears bubbled in his eyes. This had to be a joke. A nasty, sick joke that needed to stop right now!

Chloe raised a silent, trembling hand to her mouth.

"H-hey kid," the blue haired one with the funny name asked. "Did I... just hear that right? Is your Togepi... g-gone?"

And then it was all too much. Scalding hot tears streamed from his eyes, and Adam's two fists fell to the ground. "W-wha...?"

He'd just become a _Pokémon trainer_. A dream come true! And then, barely a day after it started, was it all over? Did this even happen? Normally a Revive could fix the problem, but the shattered shards scattered around him.

It wasn't fair!

All eyes were on Adam now. Hands bloodied, face streaming with tears, knees scuffed and dirty, and worst of all... no Pokémon to be seen. Ominous, hushed whispers began to accumulate. Like the depths of a murky river, they rattled and sloshed, spilling over and dirtying the air. And then the penny dropped.

"...does that mean our Pokemon could die too?" A blonde girl gulped.

"If our pokemon get killed, how can we earn money?" Another raised their voice.

"Forget money! How can they protect us if they're dead!" A third person shrieked.

"Hey, hey! Calm down a'ready!" Caitlyn attempted to restore some control. "Let's _not_ lose our heads, okay?!"

But it was too late. The panic had not only set in, but planted roots and ingrained itself.

"The old man never told us our Pokemon could _die_!"

" _We_ could die! I thought this was a vacation, not a death sentence!"

"We're never gonna make it out of-"

"Hey, HEY!" Two skinny arms flailed into the air, "Calm down, for feck's sake! Panicking won't help anyt'ing!"

"Well what else can we do?!" Someone countered instantly.

"Stop screeching for a start!" Caitlyn's sharp stare put them in their place. "Okay, so the rules have changed! We just have to be more careful! We can still beat-"

But her words were useless. People were ranging from rattled to sheer panic to... nothing, and there was nothing she could do.

Meanwhile, Chloe had knelt down next to Adam. He still hadn't moved.

"I, umm..." a hand on his back, "I'm so sorry..."

Adam clenched his hand against the ground, and grit his teeth, as more tears rolled down his cheeks.

"...Don't be."


	10. Restart

"O-okay, okay okay..." Grant lowered his arms, keeping everything as disarming as possible, "so does... everyone understand?"

An awed, eerie silence melted through the vicinity. Dozens of panicked fish-eyes stared him down, and the evening twilight wasn't doing anything to make the ambience less creepy.

"S-so let's make sure we _don't_ panic," Grant's voice was stiff. "And that way we can-"

"-we're all gonna die!" Someone cut him off, and then the shit hit the proverbial fan as the restrained tension of the audience dissolved into pure mania.

"...great," Grant massaged his forehead, as his 'audience' descended further by the second into the self-spawned chaos, some resorting to literally running about in circles. "So should we just let them figure this out for themselves?"

Alex balked. "W-well if it's all the same to you, I'd rather see these young'uns live to see tomorrow!"

"Well yeah, of course, but how're we gonna get their attention back now?" Grant frowned. "We'd have better bloody luck herding walla-"

But Grant's voice, as well as everything else in the surrounding area, was quickly drowned out by a piercing, high-pitched chirruping. Flapping its tiny wings madly, Priya's Natu squeaked for all it was worth. Panicky limbs eventually stopped flailing, and soon most everyone was covering their ears instead.

"Th-thank you, Natu," Priya mumbled, and brought the tiny bird back to her chest.

"Good thinking, Priya," Grant could breathe a sigh of relief. "Now, everyone! Before you run off screaming again, listen to me! If we start panicking and forgetting ourselves, we're letting that old guy win! You understand?! And I dunno about you, but I don't wanna give him that satisfaction! So you wanna know what I think we should do?!"

The loudest silence pursued his answer.

"We fight! Fight against him, and his silly game, and win! We've all played these games before, right? So how hard can this one be? It's still gotta follow the same rules, hasn't it? So instead of running around like headless Torchics,"

A ripple of laughter was his mercy.

"Let's all get a good night's sleep, get training first thing tomorrow, and live to fight another day!"

Applause smattered from the crowds, and Grant could've sworn he even heard a half-drowned cheer. But nevertheless, this was a huge improvement over the panic from before. If they all focused on training instead of panicking, not only would they be putting their time to better use, but also increase their chances of getting out of here, and seeing their families again!

Grant squeezed the locket around his neck. "I'll seeya soon, Izzy."

* * *

It had been a restless night for Caitlyn. Not only did Leon squirm about so much that she had to return him to his pokeball, she found it so hard to relax, even close her eyes, that she had soon relented, and was once again aggressively stroking the Litleo.

"Mrrraaoooww...?!" Leon flailed about in her grip, splashed across her waist and entirely dissatisfied with the arrangement.

"I know Leon, I know..." she groaned at him. "Just settle down and lemme hug ye fer a while, a'right?"

Leon continued to squirm, however it at least seemed like he was listening to her. The flailing limbs reduced in vigour, and his claws were no longer digging into her side. Huge improvement. Caitlyn's bitten nails raked across Leon's fur, strained and shaky. Never in her years of playing these games, had she seen a Pokémon actually die. It was mentioned a couple of times at specific places, like in Lavender Town where someone had lost a Clefairy, and even the cartoon said a Charmander would die if its tail fire went out, but... but these were the games. They were child friendly, handholdey, happy, fluffy shite! This wasn't supposed to happen!

Caitlyn flicked at the smoulder of light atop her Litleo's head. Not unlike a candle, it would flicker around her touch, and she could feel the heat prickle across her skin with the contact, yet it wouldn't burn. Was Leon's head fire like a Charmander's tail fire? Was his life force that fragile? Even when he was in the bathtub, it at least sizzled...

The weight on her eyelids was really coming down now, but as the light of dawn crept in through the cheap curtains, she knew attempting to sleep was futile at this point.

"...wanna go for a walk, Leon?"

"Mrrh?!" The Litleo's head bounced up instantly. A flurry or flaws and embers he was, scratching himself off of the bed and reducing Caitlyn's arm to little more than ribbons in the process. She grimaced at the fresh marks, as they glistened in the approaching sunlight.

"I'll... take that as a yes then."

With a few clenched fists and a run under cold tap water, her arm was hopefully just going to scar for a while. Still grimacing at the pain, Caitlyn pulled on some day clothes, including a warm hoodie from the generic grey set that seemed to have come with the property. Her front door had barely been opened, and Leon had already shot out of it. But with a sharp whistle from Caitlyn, he sat to attention, and stared at her expectantly instead.

"T'ank ye Leon, I'll be with ye soon." Caitlyn sighed. The brisk morning air kissed her cheeks, blowing the sleep from her eyes and inviting her to join nature's party with its salty, seaside tang. She hadn't yet been to the beach here. While she knew it wasn't far, and the allure of getting sand in-between her toes was powerful, she resisted the urge in favour of exploring the town. It was ghostly quiet without the usual bustle of other trainers, what with it being half five in the morning, and maybe with Leon as her only distraction, she would be able to better understand how this world worked.

The best she could figure, her town was divided into a group of little chalets on one side, while the heavy duty block of flats sulked on the other end of town more inland, and all of the commerce and tourism was squashed into one street in the centre. Shops and stalls were run by characters who were seemingly programmed into the game itself, and an unusual quirk that existed in this world, but not the games, was that many of the shops - and most importantly the poke centre - had opening and closing times.

This had become evident to Caitlyn as she spied the shop attendant dragging a chalkboard sign out through the front doors, and scribble the day's notices down on it. While it did give Caitlyn relief that poke centre nurses no longer had to suffer back shifts, and she felt all the more ridiculous for even taking pity on pixelated characters, it did also draw some concern from her depths;

What if you needed a heal at night time? Would you have to rely on potions? That was a risky game...

"Hmm, Super Potions on premium..." the redhead mused to herself, reading the scribblings on the notice board. Of the three whole items she'd managed to gather up since starting her training, a Super Potion was indeed one of them. She hadn't brought it with her, instead keeping it safe in a drawer back at the chalet, her two years working in a shop had her wondering just how much buying power a 'premium' Super Potion would get her.

The church bells rang six; another irony of this world that Caitlyn couldn't help but laugh at. And just like clockwork, the shop attendant appeared at the door, and span the sign around to 'open'. With a smile and a tinkle of the bells on the door, she unveiled her wares to the world.

"T'anks," Caitlyn accepted the door as it was held open for her, and stepped into the tiny shop. Pungent bleach mixed in with seaside salt, and the abundance of shelves crammed with all sorts of random things with no rhyme or reason, it was with a slight twinge in the chest that the redhead was reminded of home. From the salty air to the sporadic items on the shelves, it was all just a bit too familiar.

"M-morning!" Niceties always came first. "So i-if I were to sell ye a Super Potion, how much would that be worth on premium?"

The lady behind the counter smiled politely. "Super Potions normally sell for three fifty, but today I'm buying them for five hundred instead."

"And that's today only?" Caitlyn asked.

"Unless demand increases, yes," the lady continued. "If that happens, the premium will be even higher tomorrow."

"That's quite a gamble," Caitlyn rubbed at her chin. A quick glance around the shop floor told her that five hundred still was not a lot of money however; basic hygiene necessities like toothpaste and soap were both past the thousand mark. Even the humble newspaper was going to cost her a hundred, simple food items like snack bars and fruit varied between one and five hundred, and for clothes, she was looking at five figure sums for basic, not-very-cute things. Better than the boring grey, but definitely not deserving of the luxury price tag.

Caitlyn let out a low whistle. Surviving here wasn't going to be easy.

"A'right, t'ank you," Her customer service voice escaped her smile. The shop attendant simply smiled back at her, and let the redhead on her way.

6AM seemed to be the wake-up call for the village's early risers, it seemed. With Leon still trotting about her heels and getting in the way wherever he could, Caitlyn was relieved that others were settling into this lifestyle without too much hassle, either. As always, there was the early morning jogger, only with the wonderful addition of a Spheal barrelling across the ground alongside them, while the stereotypical yoga wanker stretched in some oblique position on the field across from them, her Swablu looking thoroughly unamused with the situation. Like breezes, freshly roused trainers would float into town, generally with a Pokémon chasing after them and a sleepy expression. Some could afford breakfast items from the nearby deli, and Caitlyn grumbled at how good it all smelled, while others were just as penniless as her, reinforcing just how much of an uphill struggle this was all going to be.

"Okay..." she collapsed into a bench opposite a fountain, and frowned at the missed opportunity. "Sit here for a minute, then maybe some trainin' or something. How's that sound, Leon?"

"Mrrrah!" Leon mewled up at her, doing the butt wiggle thing as he aimed his jump. But clumsy feet were his enemy as always, and once again Leon found himself scrabbling against gravity.

"C'mere, c'mere..." Caitlyn winced in apprehension, gripping at his torso with two shaky hands. Leon gave a 'mrow?' of confusion as he was lifted away, and plonked into his trainer's lap.

"Therrre's a good boy," she smiled, feeling his warmth radiate through her. "Now I'll be just a..." she gulped down a yawn, "m-minute longer..."

* * *

"Okay Makkie, give that new move another try!"

"Mak!" Makuhita's deep voice grunted, as it thwacked a poor Shellder with the full force of its arm. The Shellder whimpered as Makuhita struck it once, twice more, and retaliated by bounding into the air!

"Another Clamp! Dodge it if you can, Mak-" Grant issued his command. However his mind and Makuhita's body were not one, and instead the fat little fighter gurgled in surprise as the shellfish suctioned onto its head.

"Maak! Maaaaaak!" Makuhita grunted in pain.

"See if you can pry if off or something, Makko!" Grant ordered. Makuhita's two pudgy fists gripped at the sides of Shellder's shell, and began trying to force it open again. No such luck.

Shellder squeezed again, and Makuhita resorted to simply punching at the tough shell instead. Every hit was accompanied with a pained squeak, and Makuhita was quickly learning where it could hit hardest;

"Mah-

kuh-

hi-!"

Away it kept punching. However, Shellder wisened up, and chose its timing perfectly to release Makuhita's head and crash back onto the sand. And Makuhita wasn't quick enough to avoid punching itself in the face.

"Ohhh..." Grant shook his head fondly. "Alright, easy mistake. Double back and keep punching! You're almost there!"

Shellder retaliated with a blast of rainbow coloured light, and the fighter countered with another series of arm thrusts, which cracked the shell on the second hit, broke through on the third, and reduced the Shellder into pixels on the fourth. Success!

"Whew!" Grant could breathe a sigh of relief. "Great work Makkie! He was a tough old bugger eh?"

"Ma-kuuh?" Makuhita scratched its head, staring at something in the waves.

"Huh? What's wrong? Did it drop something?"

Makuhita span around, and 'pointed' at what looked like a box bobbing up and down in the water. Grant reached in to grab it, only to find out that it was a lot heavier than he'd expected at first. Was everything in this world heavy?

He tore the wrapping off, and found what looked like a roll of brown paper inside. It was far brown paper could ever hope to be however, as well as a lot springier.

"What am I gonna do with this...?" He frowned. With a shrug, he tucked the roll under his arm. It would be useful in some way or another.

"C'mon Makkie, let's head back. See if we can't find a use for whatever this is."

"Kuh!" Makuhita pumped both arms, and started swaggering behind its trainer.

"All good, Alex?" Grant called across the sands, where she, her boy Ty, her Kangaskhan and even the French boy Michel were busy making sandcastles. Something told Grant that this was more to keep Ty happy than anything else.

"Oh! Mornin' Grant! We're doing great! Takin' a quick break from all this fightin', ain't that right Kanga?"

"Skaaa...!" Her Kangaskhan mewled down to her, showing incredible motor skills as it placed a tiny stick on top of Ty's sand 'castle'. It was really just a mound of sand with a hole in the top, but Ty looked like he was satisfied with it.

"That's great news. You find anything yet?"

"Well, umm..." Alex fished around in the grocery bag she'd taken with her. "I dunno if it counts, but we found this pearl? It's real shiny like?"

Grant was expecting a marble. Maybe a ping pong ball. Definitely _not_ a bloody soccer ball!

"Oh whoa, that's huge!" He gasped, as Alex wrenched the thing out of her bag. "You _found_ that?!"

"Uh huh!" Alex beamed, as her giant pearl was quickly snatched away by Ty. "Kanga beat up this little dude in a shell, and it left this behind! Y'all think it's worth much...?"

"Oh, you'll get a lot for that," Grant nodded fervently. "A lot more than this thing, anyway."

He unrolled his sheet of material to show to her, and even she looked confused by it.

"What _is_ that?"

"No clue," he shrugged. "But I figure, if I can't find any use for it, I can sell it. Everything's worth something, eh?"

"Maybe you can-" Alex began, but her suggestion was interrupted by an irate yell from Ty. With a huff, the boy shuffled away from his 'sandcastle', which was little more than a crater now. Alex's giant pearl had proven heavier than he'd thought.

"Oh, Ty..." She sighed, and brought the small boy into her arms. "Sandcastles and heavy things don't work together, hun!"

"But shiny shiny..." Ty sobbed into his mother's shoulder.

"We'll help you make another one, okay?" Alex urged. "Sorry Grant, looks like grown-up talk'll have to wait!"

"...no no, that's all good," Grant continued staring at the sandcastle. "...you seen Shemmy recently? I just had an idea."

"Shemmy? No idea honey. Try back at the village?" Alex ruffled her boy's hair. "He and that Ivan boy get along pretty good."

"That's good, 'cause I need both of them!" Grant cried, "C'mon Makkie, I'll race ya home!"

"Mak!" Makuhita grinned, before shoving his trainer over and charging ahead.

"Ooh, you're gonna pay for that!" he laughed, and chased after the fighter.


	11. Climbing

Claws in the stomach were never a good thing.

With a groan and a gasp, Caitlyn wrenched her stiff neck forwards, to find not only her trusty Litleo mincing her belly with his claws, but a pair of hands stroking him vigorously. Bright light burned her corneas, and now dozens of other trainers were walking about the town, going about with their days. Had she slipped into another dimension?

"What the...?" Her throat was weirdly dry. She smacked her lips a few times. "W-who-"

"Oh! Mornin' sleepyhead!" A familiar voice beamed at her. "That was some nap you took!"

"I wasn't aslee-eep," Caitlyn's answer was strained out into a yawn. "I just needed a... a quick break!"

"Uh huh," Aurelie nudged her arm. "And I can teleport?"

Caitlyn wasn't about to give her the satisfaction. "Maybe ye can."

Aurelie's smile tipped to one side. "Either way, wanna train with me?"

Caitlyn stretched her tired joints, and could feel every satisfying crack. "Sure. Just gimme a moment."

She gave Leon a tap to the arse, who bounded from her lap with gusto, and instantly into Aurelie's Shinx. As the two wrestled on the ground, she stumbled back to her feet. She stomped the sleepy out of her limbs, and hooked one arm behind the other to stretch it out, with another satisfying _crick_. And Aurelie flinched next to her.

"Oh gee, that was _loud,_ KitKat!" She gasped.

"Labourer's limbs for ye," she cracked the other arm in the same function. "So, where today? Also what the feck's that?"

"Nightstand," Aurelie shrugged back at her. "Would you believe me if I told ya it was dropped by a Sentret?"

"...A Sentret?" Caitlyn frowned. "Somethin' smaller than it?"

"Ohh, it was a real chubby one, if that makes any difference?"

"Still kinda hard te believe."

"Well..." Aurelie ran her hand across the polished wood. "Either way, it's interesting huh? You can get more than just your typical potions and stuff!"

Leon and Cleo barrel rolled past them both. "Anyway, wanna help me lug this home?"

"I t'ought we were going training?"

"Well we are! But I can't carry this around all the time, can I?"

"Ahh, so ye just wanted m'help with the liftin'."

"W-well no, not really..."

"A'right, give it here," Caitlyn sighed.

"Huh?" Aurelie frowned. "Give what-"

But before the blue-haired teen could react, Caitlyn had already bent down and shouldered the coffee table. "Lead the way."

Aurelie's eyes were wide with shock. "A-alrighty then! I owe ya a coffee or something?"

"Or somethin'."

One dumped coffee table later, and two teenagers had travelled south of the town, ending up in a more arid, rocky environment. One full of physically tough and stubborn beasties. The terrain was equally tough and sloping, making it easy for them to lose their footing. Stumbles were common.

"Mrrow!" Leon squeaked, rolling out of the way as a burly Machop levelled the rock behind them. A quickfire Ember to the back only angered the thing.

"Chah-p!" Machop's fist cracked the ground where Leon was standing once again. He bounded into the air, and jumped off of the Machop's head. Meanwhile, a Shinx burst out of nowhere and knocked it sideways with an electrified tackle.

"Ooh, good aim Cleo!" Aurelie gushed at it, as the Machop found its footing once again. It swerved out of the way to avoid another Ember from Leon, then physically blocked Cleo in mid-air, knocking the little Shinx to the ground at its feet.

"Ma-hah...!" The Machop growled at its prey. It pounded one fist into a palm, and clenched.

But an enormous noise stopped it in its tracks. Spreading its four paws wide apart, Leon grabbed as much land as it could, and let loose a blood-curdling roar. As Leon stared daggers at his opponent, the Machop's eyes bolted at the sight, and Aurelie took a chance.

"Shii!" Cleo bit the Machop's leg, and it flinched from the pain, rearing back and falling over. So Leon took a running jump, and with boosting help from Cleo, bounded high into the sky, loosed another ball of Ember. Fed by gravity, the Ember gained energy from the descent, and struck Machop in the face. Its arms flailed upwards from the pain, however its struggles ceased quickly, and disappeared into blue sparkles.

Leon fell back to earth, and immediately tripped over his own feet.

"Good... g-good work Leon," Caitlyn knelt down next to her Litleo, "You're doin' a grand j-"

"Awaaaahh! KitKat, look look!" Aurelie hijacked her conversation. "Cleo's doing a thing!"

Caitlyn and Leon both turned to attention, happening upon an ecstatic Aurelie dancing around her Shinx, who had exploded in a wall of light?

"Ohh, my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosshhh..." She stamped her feet in excitement. Meanwhile Cleo's silhouette had grown taller and more muscular, with a longer tail. The light finally died down, and revealed an entirely new Pokémon!

"Luxxx...!" Its growl was considerably lower than before, as it tensed its newfound bulk. Electricity crackled and discharged across its muscular limbs as it barked up at the sky. And then flinched as Aurelie wrapped her arms around it.

"Nyaaaah! You're a Luxio now! Yay!" She squashed the confused thing against her. "I'll have no grumpy teenage...ness from you, eh?"

"Maow?" Cleo's voice was muffled, as its trainer span around and around and around.

"That's a good kitty," Aurelie nuzzled her newly evolved companion. "Look KitKat! Luxio!"

"Yeah..." Caitlyn gave a meek smile. Why'd she get all the luck? Leon did much more work there, yet she got the evolution...

"Aww, don'cha worry about lil' Leon, I'm sure Cleo'll go easy on him? Also you missed something."

"Hunh?" Caitlyn had to double-take, as Aurelie pushed a little box into her hands. "Surprise!"

Caitlyn narrowed her eyes at the box, and inspected it from many angles. "...what's in this?"

"Another Mystery Box? Something random inside, like when I got that nightstand?" Aurelie explained. "It kinda got forgotten because Cleo evolved, but here ya go! It's yours now!"

"Why me? Shouldn't we share it or whatever?" Caitlyn frowned.

"Nahh, not at all! You got the last hit, so you get the thing! Besides, Cleo evolved. That's enough of a prize for me."

"Well, umm..." The redhead faltered. This was the first time someone other than her dad had given her a present, and even then it was only on special occasions. Christmas was behind them too, so even if she did rightfully win it, it still felt a little wrong to be receiving something without due cause. Her birthday was ages off, too. And yet she could feel her fingers twitch around the simple cardboard packaging. What did she do now? No one had ever prepared her for something like this? Did she even deserve it?

The dainty red bow was silky. Silky was a magical feeling. Only really special things came in silk. Her quivering hands tugged at the little knot on the box, which sprung loose almost too easily. And inside of it... more fabric?

Her breath came in a hushed gasp. It wasn't cute. Cute wasn't a good enough word. It was blue. And soft. And patterned with Mareep!

"O-oh, wow..." she melted, and unfolded the article. It was only a simple cardigan, but it hugged her skinny figure perfectly as she pulled her arms through it, and added the _comfiest_ layer of warmth. "Are ye sure ye want to _give_ me this? T-to me?"

"I kinda want it now..." Aurelie dragged her foot across the ground. "B-but that's okay! It's yours now! It wouldn't fit me anyway!"

"Well either way," Caitlyn wrung her wrists together. "I umm, that was really nice of ye. I never get nice stuff like this so... t'anks."

"No problem!" Aurelie smiled. "Maybe I'll get the next one. Back to training?"

"Oh, you bet," Caitlyn gave her a playful shove. "I'll be damned if I can't catch up to ye."

She summoned her Litleo with a sharp whistle, who instantly disentangled himself from Cleo and scrabbled to her side. "Mrrow?"

"Atta boy..." Caitlyn turned tail and beckoned him to follow. "So yeah, Spearow at t'ree o'clock?"

"Hah, watch us fry that thing!" Aurelie burst into action. "Cleo, give that Spearow a Spark real quick!"

There was a flash of lightning, followed by the sizzle of burning feathers, and the Spearow barely knew what hit it before disintegrating into pixels...

* * *

"Alright, keep it steady Makkie..."

"Hiit!"

There was a solid thwack of rock on wood as Grant punched the nails through.

He'd _definitely_ butchered the few words Shemmy had taught him in Russian. But it seemed Ivan had understood his request, because with the promise of payment came eight sharp nails, and he'd wasted no time securing into the wall of his flat; a notice board. It was a little basic, and drooping on one side thanks to Makkie, but that roll of what turned out to be cork had proven pretty useful. Now with a little luck, the four spare nails could come in useful and bring him a steady income!

But that was just a pipe dream. Whether or not it would actually happen was a different story. If it didn't, he'd just wasted himself a lot of time and money, but at least he'd be able to keep everyone updated on the current events. That was useful, right?

"Okay, that's looking... pretty shit, let's be honest," Grant sighed. Makuhita sniggered next to him.

"But hey, it looks like a notice board, and that's the important thing!" His confidence was renewed. "Now we need some paper and pens, can probably get those from the little shop down the road, but before that, it's time to hit the training Makkie. You excited?!"

"Kuuh!" Makuhita pumped both fists into the air.

"Great! We'll go beat up some things, hopefully make some money and pay that Ivan guy for his hard work. Where do you wanna go today, mate?"

Despite its slanty eyes and near expressionless face, Grant could tell that the little guy was frowning at him. Did Pokemon even have preferences?

"Well let's see... we've been to the beach already, out that way's just flat plains and ponds and crap, so nothing interesting... what about that way?"

Grant pointed what he guessed was west. With the coast facing the opposite direction, he could pick out one two three... seven mountains in the distance. One of them even had a snow cap, which was pretty impressive for the temperatures. Grant thought they were bloody baltic, were he brutally honest, but all of these northerners were practically melting in the 'heat'. Ahh, the differences a hemisphere made.

"Wanna head towards those mountains, Makkie? Beat up some rock types?" Grant enthused.

"Ku..." Makuhita rubbed a stubby mitt against its chin. "Hii! Ku! Hii!"

Suddenly the fighter was incensed, winding up its arms and punching at invisible objects.

"Sweet as," he couldn't help but smirk at the little yellow ball of energy. "We'll pick up anyone we know along the way, and form a team eh?"

Makuhita didn't respond, and instead just boxed its invisible opponent as it followed after him. But Makuhita's enthusiasm didn't last long. Once the ground took on anything of a gradient, suddenly everything was too hard for the fighting type.

"Aw c'mon Makkie, we've only gone like half a mile..." Grant prodded at it. "You're giving up already?"

His Makuhita was a dishevelled lump on the ground. Its response came as a sort of... gurgle. How was he supposed to train something that needed a rest every ten minutes?

"Right you. Once I figure out how, we're doing some stamina training, you got it?" Grant prodded Makuhita again. "'Cause I dunno about you, but I don't wanna starve out here. And if we don't start earning some money soon, we won't have any food left, so-"

But Makuhita was already on its feet. Two pudgy hands against its stomach, Grant could've sworn the fighting type was giving him a look of despair. Was that really the secret?

"...alright then, let's get moving!" Suddenly Grant felt five kilos lighter. "Race ya up the mountain, Makkie!"

"Maagh...!" Makuhita groaned in protest.

"Catch me and I'll make you seconds, eh?" The Aussie grinned.

"Kaaaaah!" Makuhita wrenched its arms upwards. But despite everything, it stomped one foot ahead of the other, and began to charge up the hill. Its breathing was heavy enough to put a hundred chain smokers to shame, but despite its chubby frame and short limbs, the little fighter was doing its damnedest to chase Grant up the hill. Of course, there was little to no difficulty in evading Makuhita's slow, clumsy attempts to grab at him, but this was exercise. This was good, solid training. Not the way he expected to train his _Pokémon,_ but Makuhita was just another opponent on the rugby pitch right now. And all of his training as a fullback was actually coming in useful for something other than being a fullback!

"Whooa," Grant skipped around Makuhita's outstretched arms, then jumped back to avoid another attempt, and took off again while the fighter was downed. "Almost got me that time!"

"Kuuuh..." Makuhita growled. With a flail, it pushed itself up off of the ground again, and dusted itself off. Its trainer disappeared behind a rock formation in the distance, and the cogs in its mind began whirring.

Meanwhile Grant had all but lost sight of the pudgy Pokemon. Rugby fields didn't usually have obstacles to hide behind, but dammit if he could apply the logic one way, then the reverse wasn't too much of a stretch. His chest heaved as adrenaline ran through his veins for the first time in days, and his limbs were obeying his very senses, instinctively swerving out of the way as Makuhita burst out from the other side of the rock, and launched itself at him again. He could feel those deceptively long arms brush against his foot as he hightailed it again, dashing another thirty or so metres towards another rock formation. "Getting closer Makkie. C'mon mate, nearly!"

"Kaaagh!" Makuhita punched the rock near it out of frustration, only to get buried under a bunch of pebbles as punishment. But the fighter's tenacity burned like never before, as it charged forwards once again, with actual speed this time, and launched a gust of air at Grant?

"Bloody hell!" He had to laugh, as the tiny tempest had him stumbling. Did Makuhita seriously learn a new move while _chasing_ him?

That information was filed away for later use, as he had to dive back out of the way again as Makuhita's arms stretched for him. Two skips backwards, and then a pivot off of the rock face spared him a little distance once again, but the far fighter simply was _not_ giving up!

And Grant had to cheat. Just a little bit. But it was only using the upper body strength he had worked so hard on to his advantage, so it wasn't really cheating. Grant grabbed at the apex of the rock formation above him, and swung up high, where Makuhita couldn't reach.

"Mak! Ma-ku!" It growled up at him, stomping on the ground a few times and then thrusting a hand downwards, as if scolding a naughty student.

"Nope, not gonna make it easy for you Makkie!" Grant found his feet atop the rock pile. "If I can climb up some rocks, I don't see why you can't follow me!"

He stuck his thumb against his nose, and waggled his fingers down at Makuhita, who literally expelled steam in response. With a chuckle, Grant hopped over several stacks of rocks, keeping _far_ off the ground this time. Would Makkie be able to take on the challenge and still follow after him?

Either way, a rumbling of the stomach told Grant that they had _both_ earned extra dinner tonight. Of course, they still had to make the money for it all, but maybe Makuhita would be more ready for battle now that it had gotten all angry chasing after him. The fighter was little more than a yellow blur in the distance as Grant hopped over the last of the rocky stacks, finding properly safe ground again at last.

With a moment's respite, he wiped the sweat from his forehead, and fluttered his shirt a few times, and only now did he realise that he wasn't alone, half way up this mountain. About twenty metres away from him stood a young girl. She was maybe in her early teens, and Grant felt an unpleasant twinge ricochet through his chest. That long brown ponytail, the oversized hoodie, even the way she stood, all withdrawn and nervous looking.

His voice caught. "I-Izzy?"


	12. Lost in Translation

Even the air seemed tense as Grant's pregnant question laboured before him. The young girl he addressed turned to face him, and

"Who are you?"

Nope. Not her. Wrong accent, wrong eye colour, wrong everything. Grant mentally kicked himself for his stupidity. Why would Izzy be here? She never played these games, or received one of these dumb watch things, or anything.

"S-sorry," he stammered, averting his gaze. "I umm, thought you might've been someone else?"

"I gathered that much," the girl's voice was cold, and sounded... maybe American but not quite?

With a Squirtle bag slung over her shoulders, a map in her hands and a little pink piggybank-shaped Pokémon floating by her side, this girl was seeming less and less like Izzy.

"Are you going to keep staring like a creeper or actually explain yourself?" She was again straight to the point.

"I umm," Grant's voice stumbled. "G-G'day, I'm Grant! From Brisbane, Australia! Your-"

"I said explain, not introduce." The girl frowned. "You must be twice my age, and we're in the middle of nowhere. Then you call me by a name that isn't mine. So please, explain what you're-"

"-Makuuuuu!"

"Ungh!"

Out of nowhere Makuhita dove, spearing his trainer in the stomach and knocking them both to the floor.

"Nnng...!" Grant tried to suck in all the air that had just been burst from his lungs. "Bad timing, Makko..."

The girl's expression just fell further. "L-look, I am going to just... go, okay? Please don't be creepy ag-"

"Wait!" Grant's hand was thrust into the air. He shoved his Makuhita off of him ("wait a second, Makkie.") and staggered back to his feet.

"Y-" his breath was still sharp. "You deserve... an explanation. Just gimme a sec."

The girl's gaze fell away, as Grant straightened out once more. Makuhita's growing impatience was quelled just a little by the girl's piggybank thing floating over and sniffing at it.

"Right..." Grant could finally breathe properly again. "Basically, you look a lot like someone I know back home? And I know that sounds creepy, so..."

And with the utmost care, his rough, stubby fingers unclasped the golden chain around his neck. "Please don't drop this. I'm gonna throw it out to you, so be ready to catch?"

He bounced the locket up and down in his hand, and testers didn't appease the lump in his throat as it left his hand and sailed towards the girl. She fumbled it once, but spared Grant a heart attack by catching it on the second attempt.

"A-alright, you see the people in that picture?" Grant explained. "That's me, my parents, and my little sister Isabelle. Oh and my dog too. His name was Munter and he passed a few years ago. B-but anyway, Izzy there looks a lot like you do now, and you're about the same age, so it was an... easy mistake I s'pose?"

"Wouldn't you already know if your sister was here?" The girl clicked the locket shut. But walked over towards Grant and handed it back.

"Sometimes your heart plays tricks on you eh?" Grant managed a weak smile. "See Izzy, she... she can't really take care of herself. And I'm all she's got left."

The girl narrowed her eyes at him. "I see. Sorry for... saying you were creepy."

"No worries eh?" Grant gave a weak smile. "I mean, I'm like twice your age. And what would a grown man have to say to a twelve year-"

"Fourteen."

"Fourteen? Ooh, sorry," an awkward grin. "Y-yeah, what would I have in common with a fourteen year old from... where are you from? Canada?"

The girl frowned at him. "Canada? No. I'm from the Nederlands, and my name is Milou."

"The Netherlands?" Grant dusted off his memory banks. And his words failed him as he tried to come up with something witty in response. Drug references were probably not a good idea.

"Mhmm. But my English teacher was from America, so that might be why you thought I was." Milou offered him a polite smile. "Now, is there a reason you are here?"

"...oh, uhh, just training this fat lump," Grant gave his Makuhita a playful shove. "Gonna have to earn some money before heading back though, otherwise we won't be eating tonight. But don't worry Makkie! You'll still get double food!"

"Kuuuh...!" Makuhita lowered its punching arm.

"Oh. I see." Milou said, and returned to face the horizon. Pointing a pencil to the sky, she ummed and ahhed for a moment before scratching down a couple of lines on her sheet of paper and repeating the process.

"...bloody hell, am I seeing this correct?" Grant broke her concentration. "Are you making a map? That's why you're out here all alone?"

"Yyyep," the brunette answered with a swish of the ponytail.

"That's impressive!" Grant exclaimed. "Mind if I have a squiz?"

Milou frowned at him.

"A-a look?"

With a slight deflation, Milou handed over her map to him, and beckoned to her piggybank. Grant grinned, and held the crinkled map up to the light, "wow... I... can't read Nederlands...ish."

The names were all complete gibberish to him. While the words echoed with familiarity, his brain just couldn't even take a stab at their meanings. Halve Maan Grot? Duisternis Kust? Eiland van Shijn? That last one sounded more like a person name than a place name.

"But it is quite similar to English?" The girl hopped on the spot next to him. "L-look, surely you can read this, Zeebriesstad?"

"...Unless it has something to do with zebras?" Grant looked dumbfounded.

"...no, silly," she sighed. "Zeebries, sea breeze. Understand now?"

"Sea breeze... wait, you're naming these places? That's adorable!" Grant cried.

"W-well yes? Map maker's right after all. Anything would be better than Town B or something, yes?"

"Y-yeah, defo." Grant agreed. "So uhh, Hoge...y, pike... town? Something to do with fish?"

"Hogepieksstad," she rolled her eyes. "High peaks. Mountains?"

"Ohh, I get it... that's where you're living?"

"Yes, other side of these hills."

"Ahaa, I'm down that side. Look, you can kinda see the town fr-"

"Yes, I've named that town too. See?"

"Dorp van Sta...ppen?" This one was even harder to figure out. "Well... dorp kinda sounds like the noise Munter made, but I doubt that's it. Stappen... stamping?"

"Close. Steps. It is the village of steps because there are lots of steps there?"

"Huh."

"You tried though. Thank you."

"Awha? Why're you thanking me?" Grant flustered.

"Effort should always be noticed." She smiled politely.

"W-well umm... thanks for thanking me, heh," Grant could feel the blush rising in his cheeks. "It's not often someone thanks me for stuff..."

"Not a problem," Milou's voice was again vague as she returned her attention to her map.

"Well, I'll leave you in peace now eh?" Grant beckoned for his Makuhita, whose attention was somewhere else. "After all, you're bus- ahh, crap."

Once again, Milou's attention was drawn away from her map, but for good reason this time.

"Hera!" The five foot tall, beetle-like Pokémon flexed its arms, and tucked its long, stabby horn.

"Uhh... you much for battling Milou?" Grant gulped, as Makuhita stomped over to him.

Milou just shook her head vigorously. "I-I... liked the contests and the little games more."

"Ah. Well I was never that good either," Grant chuckled with mirth. "But we're gonna have to work together here, else that Heracross is gonna shish kebab us. You know what those are eh?"

Milou returned him a blank look.

"...oh. Well you get these bits of meat, then you marinate them, and then you get a stick and st- what am I saying?! Not the right time! What type is that thing?"

"Psychic...?" Milou looked down to her floating piggy bank.

"Ah, so a giant bug like this'll kill it instantly. Just what we needed eh?" He had to chuckle. "Right Makkie! We'll keep it busy, you try and attack it, got it?"

Milou gulped, and nodded. Quickly she rolled up her map and beckoned her piggybank thing closer.

"Okay Makkie, I want you to stop that Heracross, alright?" Grant's voice was about an octave higher than he would've liked.

"Maku?" Makuhita sounded confused. Maybe because it wasn't a direct attack or something? So it just stood there like a potato as the Heracross' horn speared it from the right. "Hiiiii!"

Makuhita tumbled across the rocky ground, and the Heracross wasted no time in narrowly missing the piggybank with another Horn Attack.

"C-careful Munna!" Milou cried, "it's very strong, okay?!"

"Munnn-n~" the little thing span on the spot. Munna was the thing's name then?

Makuhita wobbled back to its feet as the little Munna squashed its body ever tighter. Heracross struck again with a Horn Attack, this time connecting and sending the tiny thing flying. However it bounced off the nearby rock wall with a sound almost identical to a basketball, then rebounded and struck the giant bug in the face!

"Quick Makkie, while it's dizzy!" Grant cried, and the smaller fighter lurched forwards, wrapping its arms around the Heracross' torso.

"Hera?!" It buzzed angrily, and flailed its strong arms to escape Makuhita's grip. A wave of pink blurry energy from Munna shook its resolve though, and Makuhita took that chance to wrench its body into the air, and suplex the bug into the ground.

"Okay okay, good work!" Grant shouted over the noise, and even Milou looked encouraged by their progress.

But then the Heracross got up again, and her smile dropped. It wisened up to Makuhita's tactics too, by knocking the fighter back with a sharp arm thrust. Makuhita was red at more than just the cheeks as the force of Heracross' attack knocked it to the floor. One, two, three new bruises it acquired, and an angry clicking from Heracross' depths said that Munna would soon receive the same fate.

"Munna, heal up!" Milou ordered, and her little piggybank began to glow a gentle bluish colour as the Heracross rounded on it. With a click and a growl, it slashed with its horn, striking the little Munna with deep dark gashes and knocking it farther away still. But the Munna was still glowing, and that was good this time, because the glowing was healing it?

Grant wasn't sure what that move was supposed to be. But his instincts did know one thing, and Makuhita seemed to be obeying his thoughts rather than his commands. The fighter scrambled to its feet, and launched a tiny whirlwind at the Heracross, which was just enough to make it stumble and fall.

"Hera-k!" The Heracross' clicked as its feet were swept from under it by the whirlwind, and Munna took advantage of this with another burst of psychic energy. It strained to get back up, but a full bodied Tackle from Makuhita kept it grounded once again.

But Makuhita laboured, and Heracross got back up. Again.

"Oh bloody Jesus, this thing just won't die!" Grant dragged a hand across his face. "It's times like these I wish we weren't so useless eh?"

"W-well maybe something else might work!" Milou stammered. "Munmun, I-I want you to use your Yawn attack!"

"Mmm?" Munna pulsed. It floated out of the way of Heracross' striking attack, and as the giant bug heaved, and huffed, the little pink blob blinked innocently at it, then yawned.

Heracross yawned back at it, as the motion carried.

Then Munna yawned again, its eyes dropping.

And Makuhita yawned.

And Heracross yawned again.

And Grant yawned.

And Munna yawned for a third time.

But the drowsiness took its toll as Heracross slumped to the ground, a victim of its own yawning. Munna followed suit, and Makuhita collapsed to sleep in the background.

"Ohh, you're just using it as an excuse, are-n-n-n't you Makkie?" Grant swallowed down another yawn. "Either way, you can finish it off now eh Milou?"

"Ermm..." Milou hesitated. "N-no. Munna fell asleep too."

"And so did Harry," Grant frowned. "Well that's just perfect, isn't-"

There was an angry clicking as Heracross stirred, and rose back to its feet. Munna and Makuhita remained fast asleep, however. Makkie even had one of those cliched bubbles sticking out of his nose.

"Herrraa..." Heracross clicked, shaking off its drowsiness and rounding on its sleeping compatriots. This was bad.

"You... you don't have any Awakenings by chance, do you?" Grant's smile was strained. Milou could only shake her head in response.

"...well crap," Grant sighed. "C'mon Makkie, wake up now...? You don't wanna get us killed now, do ya? M-more food?"

Makuhita continued snoring soundly. His snore bubble didn't even pop. This really wasn't good.

"Hera!" Heracross threatened, and stomped a foot in Milou's direction.

"Yagh!" She shrieked, and threw something ball shaped at the thing.

*doink!*

Grant rubbed his eyes, and saw that the Heracross had disappeared into a pokeball on the floor?

It wasn't just any pokeball either. With its blue and black patterning, Grant thought he maybe recognised it, but...?

"What the?" He flailed. "What was that?!"

"I-I don't know! I panicked, okay?!" Milou exclaimed back at him.

But strangely enough, the Heracross didn't break out straight away. It didn't break out quickly either. As the ball continued to shake about on the ground, Grant even held his breath in the dim hope that maybe-

'toing!'

And the giant, murderous Heracross was captured?

"...well that was anticlimactic," Grant couldn't help but chuckle. "Didn't you wanna beat it for the exp-"

But once again, his attention was caught. Grant twisted around to find the lazy lump of Makuhita behind him explode in a wall of light, and only grow even larger!

"What the...? Already?" He frowned. Evolution in the games was never really anything amazing, but seeing it up close for himself, he could really appreciate it. Even if he could barely see it for all the blinding light. His vision was still purplish as the all-consuming light dissipated, to leave behind a fighter that was bigger and fatter than ever; Hariyama!

Of course, it was still fast asleep, taking up most of the horizon as it snoozed.

"They grow up so fast," Milou was standing next to him.

"I'll say..." Grant balked. "Feeding him'll be a chore, I'll tell ya that. I thought you needed to defeat a thing to get experience? When'd that change?"

Milou shrugged. "My first game was Y, and they did it then?"

"I never got chance to play any of these new ones..." Grant admitted. "So all of this is a huge learning curve for me. But I like learnin' new stuff! You never learned a bloody thing on a construction site."

"Construction... site?" Milou frowned at him.

"Oh, y-yeah, it's where I work. Only thing I ever learned was Dave's 'secret' concrete mix," Grant flexed two fingers on each hand. "Didn't think Wattie's sauce actually made a difference, but he bloody swore by it."

"O-okay!" Milou' smile was thin. "W-well umm... thank you. F-for helping with the Heracross."

"No worries. I'll sleep easier knowin' you've got something big and strong to protect you while you do your map making thing," Grant smiled. "Speaking of which, could I get a copy of it sometime?"

"...I-I suppose you'd want it in English?" She skipped a step or two.

"English?" Grant was taken aback for a moment. "O-oh yeah, you speak two languages, don'cha...?"

"Four," Milou corrected. "Also German and French."

"...well scheiße," Grant exercised his cultured and varied understanding of languages. "You're just a kid, and you know so much more than me..."

"I just know different things, not more things," she touched her arm. "You know how to make things, working in a construction site, yes? I don't know how to make many things. Only maps."

"Well yeah, but maps and translating are a lot more useful than making a... I dunno, birdhouse or something." His laugh didn't meet his smile.

"...you can make a birdhouse?"

Once again, the strings were tugged. Another bird fanatic? Grant stopped staring at his feet, and instead met Milou's wide-eyed gaze.

"...well yeah?"

"C-could you make me a birdhouse?" Her eyes were shining.

"Long as you don't mind it looking a bit... rustic, I would happily." Grant said.

"Rustic, rustic..." Milou brought her pencil to her lips. "Th-that means charming, right?"

"I-in about the vaguest way possible, yeah?" Grant shrugged. "I'll see what I can do?"

"If it gives a house to little Taillows and Pidoves and things, then I'm happy." For the first time that day, Milou's smile looked genuine.

"No worries then!" Grant offered his hand, and percolated beneath the surface as she grasped a hold of it and shook. His two fingers were the width of her entire wrist, and he was pretty sure he'd be able to close his hand entirely around hers.

"Now I dunno when, but I'll do my best eh?" Grant was very careful in letting the tiny hand go. "Cause obviously I've gotta source the wood first, and then nails and tools and crap, and it... could take a while."

"W-well, I thank you in advance," said Milou, unrolling her map once again. " _Goede nacht_!"

"Hweee...da," Grant tried to imitate the noise, "Nach- oh, I get it!"

He gave his newly evolved Hariyama a sharp slap to the stomach, and it gave a loud gurgling complaint in response. "Have a good one!"

Well that was a fun distraction, Grant thought. After shoving his Hariyama awake and convincing the enormous fighter to follow him back down the hill, he knew that the day was only going to stretch on longer for every heaving step Hariyama took. As if it were dragging its feet on purpose.

"C'mon Mak... Harry, we're almost there," Grant sighed at his Pokémon, who had gotten seriously bothered by a Spearow that had landed on its head. Cleanly evading Hariyama's flails of protest, the little bird took the opportunity to nestle.

"Haaaa..." Hariyama complained in an almost laughably low voice, swatting in vain at the tiny clump of feathers atop its head. The Spearow didn't seem perturbed by this development in the slightest.

"It's just a bird Harry, it won't hurt you," Grant folded his arms. "Now, you want feeding or not? Cause we've gotta find at least one good drop tonight, else-"

"Yah!" Hariyama had already hatched and executed a plan, namely slamming its considerable weight into the ground.

"Spee!" The Spearow cawed in protest, and did indeed fly away, but those deep cracks in the ground weren't to be screwed with.

"O-okay Harry, well done for getting rid of the bird," Grant slowly drew out his pokeball. "Now I'm gonna just return you to your pokeball for a little bit..."

Some pebbles loosed themselves from the rock face, and the floor shuddered.

"A-and then we're gonna get off this mountain, okay?" Grant explained. Hariyama's response was a snort.

"Sorry mate, just tryna keep us safe, alright?" He kept his movements slow and deliberate. "I just really don't want this mountain to-"

Another ominous crackling noise.

"Whooa, shit!" He cried, knocked off his feet as the entire plateau gave way. And his stomach rose into his lungs as the platform tipped, introducing him to the way down.

Grant grasped onto Hariyama for safety. He was big and heavy, so he wouldn't get knocked over so easy. But then everything he knew was left behind, as the rock platform began its descent. The blood had already rushed to his head, and with enormous dust clouds and tiny pebbles getting in the way, it was becoming increasingly difficult to see.

"Okay Harry, to the right now!" Grant yelled against it all, and Hariyama shuffled to the right, following orders. The platform curved in the same direction, narrowly clipping another rock that was raised up out of the mountainside. Several large chunks of rock broke off from the edge when the two surfaces met, and of course rained down upon Grant and Hariyama.

"Agh! Bloody-" Grant seethed, shielding his eyes with one arm as sharp shards of rock sliced into his skin. "O-okay Harry, need a left now, and quickly!"

"Ya-mah!" Hariyama shifted its weight over to the left hand side, and their rock platform narrowly missed collision with another jutting peak, this time creating sparks as it shocked past.

"Ssh...!" Grant felt the sparks burn. "How did we even get into this situation, eh Harry?!"

"Rii!" Hariyama grunted, its eyes focused on the task ahead. And the angry cloud of Spearow.

"You're shittin' me," Grant sighed. "Okay Harry, looks like we'll have to fight them off too! Reckon you can hit them?!"

"Haaah..." Hariyama focused, and flexed the muscles in its arms.

"Roh!" A Spearow cawed, and dove at the fighter. Its beak tore into arm flesh, and Hariyama wasn't fast enough to strike it upon retreat. Several others joined in, swooping, attacking, and evading.

"Rih!" Hariyama growled in pain, as talons drew blood on its forehead. And once again, an offending Spearow got away unharmed.

"Sneaky buggers!" Grant yelled. "It's like they know you've just evolved or something!"

Hariyama's every movement was laboured and lethargic. Maybe as a Makuhita it would've had the agility to teach these Spearow a lesson, but a new body meant getting used to it, and these Spearow were taking full advantage of that.

"Yam-mah!" Hariyama roared, and struck one in the face at last with an impressive palm thrust. Its wings drooped, and instantly the little bird shattered into blue shards, dissolving away into nothing.

"Alright, great work bro!" Grant shook his Pokémon arm in excitement. "Reckon you can do that again?!"

Grant had to flail to avoid getting struck by Spearow himself, but Hariyama knocked another one out of the sky with a second blindingly fast movement.

"Speeee!" One of the flock crowed, and suddenly they started dive bombing two at a time instead of one, giving Hariyama twice the work. Its arm barely missed a Spearow mid-dive, and paid the price as the little bird reacted smoothly to it, and seared flesh with its beak on the way past.

"Just hang in there Harry..." Grant gulped. "We can't fall down a mountain forever!"

But his eyes widened. "Shit! Hard left, hard left!"

The jut came out far too fast for anyone to get out of the way in time. Hariyama's hand crunched through the rock formation, splintering it and sending sharp pebbles all over the place. A violent swerve to the left had them clearing another jut, while a journey back right clipped the edge of another, sending their platform on a spin. But thankfully the ground was finally levelling out, and despite all the spinning and chaos, the pair of them had made it to the bottom in one piece.

"...huh?" Grant opened his eyes. "...we safe now?"

Their rock platform shattered, and Grant tumbled off of it, touching stable ground at last. But despite his nausea, he noticed immediately that something wasn't right. A shiver danced across his shoulders, and he could feel his eyes water for no apparent reason. The once sunny weather had quickly gone overcast too.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. He wasn't sure if it was just standard paranoia or an actual presence, but something had Grant on edge, making him feel unwelcome. A heavy, metallic number rolled across the floor, nudging his foot. Strange, that wasn't there before. But despite everything, it looked pretty valuable. So Grant swallowed down his anxiety, and scooped it up from the ground.

"N-not a complete waste at least," A mutinous quiver in his voice. "Looks like we're getting dinner tonight after all, Harry. L-let's just... find an exit, eh?"

Grant looked around for any sign of an escape. The mountain he had just crashed down would've been all but impossible to climb back up again, while steep cliffs penetrated most of his surroundings. Other than the dank dark cave opposite him, which was of course extremely inviting, Grant didn't see any good ways of escaping from-

And then he saw them.

With a flash of lightning, the figure was illuminated. Swathed entirely in dark robes, against a shadowy backdrop of cliffs, it was the surprise factor more than anything that had Grant tripping over his feet for sake of distance. Surprise, not fear.

"You..." Its deep voice rattled, as the robed being obviously pointed at him in what would've been funny under any other circumstances. What was this, a Dickens novel?

Another lightning bolt shattered through the skies, and yet the robed figure grew no brighter. "You are not to set foot here..."

And Grant found his feet again. "W-well what a coincidence, I don't wanna be here either!" He stammered. "S...so if you'll just, point me to an exit, I'll be out of your uhh... hair?"

Another roar of thunder. Seemingly without moving, the shrouded figure had produced a pokeball.

"You'll not pass, traveller," they rattled, "unless you can defeat me!"


	13. Nightmares and Dreamscapes

"Wait..."

That threat made so little sense that Grant actually stumbled. "You want to battle? And then you'll let me go?"

The hooded figure rattled, "...only if you are victorious."

"Uh huh," Grant checked his watch, and then rifled through his bag. "Well could you lemme get to a centre first? I just fought off a Heracross, and a whole heap of Spearows, and I'm not too sure big Harry here's keen on another battle so soon."

His opponent remained unmoving. Pokeball in hand, the wind spoke for them with its sharp gusts.

"That a... yes?" Grant dared put a foot forwards. "Cause I'll _definitely_ be back right away, m-"

His answer was a flash of crimson. From his opponent's pokeball it came, and took the shape of a seven foot tall, muscle bound steel dinosaur thing. With a heavy, metallic growl, it stomped its foot into the ground and cracked open a neat little fissure.

"...okay, point taken," Grant grimaced. "Do you have any... potions we could use?"

And the dissent could almost be felt from within those endless swathes of black. Once again without a word, the figure raised their arm into the air, exposing a strangely colourful bracelet on their wrist. It twinkled, and then so did the Aggron by their side. An enormous energy thundered from nowhere, and the Aggron was engulfed in what looked like a giant multi-coloured egg. Bursts of energy would continuously escape from the nova, and Grant instinctively stepped back away from the madness.

The ball of light condensed and evaporated away, leaving behind a very different Pokémon. It was still an Aggron, there was no question about that, but it looked a lot more metallic, and heaps bulkier than before, if that was even possible. Aggrons didn't evolve, did they? And on command like that? What was this, Digimon?

"Looks like we've got no choice," Grant forced a laugh. "You got enough in you for another battle, Harry?"

Hariyama tensed itself up in response, flexing its impressive musculature and staring the Aggron down. The Aggron in return met Hariyama's gaze, and drew itself level with the fat fighter. The cloaked figure took in a rasping breath,

"Mega Aggron, go."

And Grant was already on the back foot. For Aggron had already tucked in its head and charged. Hariyama just barely had time to sponge the impact, blocking the beast's advance with its enormous hands.

Ground shifted beneath the pair as Aggron's charge pushed Hariyama back. Little pebbles were being shaken loose from the mountain they'd just crashed down, and Grant really didn't want to deal with a landslide, on top of everything else. Aggron creaked like iron as it attempted to force Hariyama back, but its bulk was proving too much.

"Alright Harry, on the offensive!" Grant instructed. "Give it a nice headache with your Arm Thrust!"

"Hah...!" Hariyama strained. One huge hand was withdrawn from the Aggron's head, and then slammed right back with a sickening thud. The creature groaned, its head ringing like a bell as each successive thrust pushed it back a couple of inches.

"Great work Harry!" Grant cheered. "I reckon you've stunned it, so follow up with a-"

"Take Down," the robed figure ordered, and Aggron sprang into action, sweeping between Hariyama's outstretched arms and spearing it in the chest, knocking them both to the floor.

"Use it!" Grant shouted, and Hariyama took advantage of the momentum to haul Aggron's weight and throw it. The heavy metal dinosaur thing cracked the ground beneath it upon contact, but still got back up as if nothing had happened. There was no labour in its movements, nor a scratch on its body. But there was murder in its eyes.

With a snort, Aggron threw its bulk into the cliffs beside them both, and an ominous crackling from above gave Grant and Hariyama only minimal preparation.

"Get back Harry!" He leapt back out of the way, as Hariyama shattered a boulder with its palm. However it too was forced to retreat as dozens more avalanched past, ranging in size from football to car. Luckily Harry escaped with just a forehead bruise. Its chest was heaving, but the opponent gave no quarter as it burst from nowhere, launching another enormous rock at the pair of them.

Hariyama braced, and buckled only a little as the huge boulder was stopped at its hands. It shifted the momentum and knocked the boulder away, but didn't have time to brace or impact as the Aggron once again speared it in the stomach. Hariyama was caught completely off guard this time, and was forced to absorb the impact of a half-ton metal thing charging into it at speed.

"Rih?!" The fighter gasped, retching over and spitting out blood. The Aggron had given it a definite wheeze now, and was giving the fighter no chance to get back up. Sharp metal talons raked its body, and Hariyama writhed in pain as the Aggron literally slashed away at its life force.

"C'mon Harry, get up now..." Grant couldn't swallow the heart in his throat. "I can't lose you mate...!"

And with every Metal Claw assault came a screech, like nails on a chalkboard. Hariyama was getting more and more bruised by the second, and Aggron was showing no sign of letting up.

"Dammit...!" Grant was visibly sweating. "Bugger it Harry, triple food if you get up now, for f-"

And an impossibly loud 'thunk!', as Hariyama's palm shot up into the the air, knocking Aggron's claws out of the way. The monster shrieked with pain, as one of its arms had literally been bent all the way back at the elbow joint, and there was another loud ring as Hariyama forgot strategy and simply tackled the beast to the floor!

Enormous handprints were smacked into Aggron's metal carapace, each one producing notes of varying pitch. Sharp claws from Aggron's other hand impaled Hariyama's chest and pushed the fighter back once again, where Aggron found its feet and charged towards the fighter. With a timely swing, Aggron threw its enormous tail at Harry, who responded by grabbing onto the appendage.

Hariyama slowly brought itself to a stop, and reversed the momentum, wrenching the tail and swinging with all it had left! Aggron's roars were muted into squeaks, as Harry began moving it instead. Aggron lost its footing, and its weight became its own enemy as Harry gained torque, swinging the beast around once and launching it!

With a screech, Aggron sailed into the nearest cliff face and embedded itself into the rock wall, splitting the surface and causing a landslide.

"Oh Jesus," Grant grimaced, as the entire mountain was completely defaced, burying the Aggron beneath it!

Gigantic boulders continued to crash down from atop what was once a mountain, and the Aggron was nowhere to be seen. Grant kept expecting it to burst out of the rubble at any given moment, but instead a pulse of blue sparkly things rippled out from the debris, and the hooded figure hung their head, as Hariyama crashed from exhaustion in the background.

"...congratulations," they spoke. "You are victorious."

Grant flinched as the figure dug into their pockets, and produced two small, ball-shaped items.

"Choose your reward."

He uncoiled slowly, and with a gulp, gave both items a once over. "Err..."

His Hariyama continued struggling to breathe behind him, so he did the decent thing and returned it back to its pokeball. Why couldn't this guy offer some potions or money instead?

With a little sigh, Grant frowned, and weighed up his choices. In one hand, the robed figure held a pink glowy orb thing, about the size of a cricket ball, and in the other they offered a... marble?

Maybe a little bit bigger than a marble. But it looked like one, made of glass and with a greyish swirly thing in the centre of it. Grant simply offered the robed stranger an awkward smile; were either of them worth taking? What the hell did they do?

"W-well, ermm..." The Australian itched his head, "I guess I'll... maybe, go with the glowy pink thing?"

Someone back at the village would know what it was. It looked more valuable than the marble at least.

"Interesting. So you've taken that path..." the robed figure spoke, only confusing Grant more. "Very well," they handed the orb over to Grant, who again had to strain at its surprise weight. "May fortune look upon you, trainer."

"Th-thanks..." Grant stammered, his right arm really feeling the strain from how unexpectedly heavy this orb was. "Hey, y-you know where the nearest-"

Grant looked up, but the shadowy stranger was gone. Not even hiding, but... gone. He couldn't even sense their presence. As if today wasn't confusing enough.

"All...righty then," He smiled meekly to no one, and glanced around. Mountains in every direction, dark and cloudy skies, and no sign posts anywhere. This was going to be a fun evening.

"I don't suppose you can tell me which way I wanna go?" He asked the orb in his hands, wrenching it skywards and gazing into its depths. Amidst the pink cloudy stuff, he could've sworn he spied the glow of a crescent moon, nestled in the twilight. And that was even more confusing.

"...guess not eh?" He chuckled to no one. Hoping against hope he wouldn't come into trouble, Grant picked a direction, and trudged his tired feet forwards. As long as nothing burst out of somewhere and mauled him, he'd be fine.

* * *

"Hagh?" Isabelle Langley awoke with a start. Her dreams of sweeping grassy fields were shattered by the unholy squawking of her alarm clock. Her groggy hand flailed out for it, and bashed the little bird on the head, shutting it up for at least another two minutes. Just enough time to doze off ag-

"Izzy! Time to get up, now!"

Auntie Kathy's voice hollered up the stairs. Uh oh, she sounded angry. Despite everything her body wanted, Izzy wrenched herself out of the bedsheets and plushies, at least making an effort to start the day.

7:06 AM, a still sleepy Izzy toddled down the stairs. Hair brushed and uniform on, she at least looked the part, aside from the duck slippers. They were just comfy.

"Morning lazybones," Auntie Kathy smiled, sliding her niece a nice, healthy, chocolatey bowl of milo to start her day. "Weather reports say it could hit thirty five, thirty six today, so you be careful got it?"

Kathy rest two hands on her bump, and sighed deeply. "Did you read your planner this morning?"

"Oh umm, not yet!" Izzy's spoon didn't reach her mouth. "I had this really strange dream about a big grassy field, and I spent so long trying to remember it that I... forgot."

Kathy sucked air in through her teeth. "We can't be having that, Izzy bee. If you don't remember the everyday things, you'll start forgetting who you are! And then we'll have to name you Dave, and-"

Isabelle snorted out milk. "N-no no no, I don't wanna be named Dave! I don't suit Dave!"

Kathy tied back her auburn curls into a ponytail, and got to work scrubbing the bacon fat from a frying pan. "Well, if you don't keep to the plan Izzy, we're gonna have to!"

Izzy blanched under her aunt's perplexing words. Why Dave of all names? That's not even a girl's-

And then she saw the grin. Ohh, so she was joking.

Izzy could feel the weight dissolve off of her shoulders as it turned out her auntie was not serious after all. With a roll of the eyes, she drained her bowl, and plonked it on the kitchen countertop by the sink.

"Now you have a good day at school, okay?" Auntie Kathy offered her niece a hug. "My Izzy busy bee?"

"Uh huh! I'll try!" Izzy nestled into the hug. "...ooh! I felt a kick!"

"He already likes you," Kathy pat her stomach and smiled. "Now you better get moving Izzy! Otherwise you'll miss the bus!"

"Alrighty then! I'll seeya later Auntie!" Izzy cried, dashing across the wooden floors to kick off her slippers and retrieve her shoes. A rucksack was slung over her shoulders, and into the streaming sunlight she dove.

7:24, and it was already pushing twenty five outside. No sooner had Izzy left the porch that she broke out into a sweat, the back of her neck clamming up. She'd lived here for years, and still not gotten used to Darwin's heat. It was just so... icky sticky.

The air literally shimmered in the distance as Izzy plodded. Her bus stop was only a few hundred more metres away, thank Jesus, but she already wished she'd taken a water with her before leaving.

But thankfully the bus shelter had shade. No protection from the heat or wildlife, but she wasn't going to dry up like a crisp at least. That was something. There was still a few minutes before it arrived, so she stayed true to her words, and thumbed through her planner. Like her uncle Bob always seemed to say, "Hey, Steve! Crack open that esky and grab us a-"

Oops, wrong quote;

"If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail."

Izzy scribbled a quick note on the latest page, 'got bus, 7:31', as the ancient model trundled in like a mirage. With a dust cloud and a sputter, it rattled to a halt, and the doors fluttered open.

"Just you today?"

"Umm, think so?" Izzy looked about her, and saw no signs of anyone else wanting this bus. So she got her ticket stamped for the morning, and tucked herself into a seat on the third row with a good, dog-eared old friend.

The situation hadn't changed upon leaving the bus half an hour later, where Izzy still had the book two inches from her face as she weaved through crowds of people towards the complex on the other side of the park. Seeming to know where the other people were without even seeing them, Izzy was all but oblivious as she explored her fantasy world, only to snap out of it when-

"H-hey, watch out!"

Her heart gave an almighty lurch as something oval shaped crashed past her peripherals, and the goatman and trolls of her novel were replaced with other shell shocked teenagers.

"Watch your kicking Gibbo! Y'almost bloody scalped a sheila!" One young man slapped another in the back of the head, "sorry about thaaaat!"

"U-um, it's okay!" Izzy finally squashed her book back into her bag. Now for the offending missile...

She scuttled around in a fashion not unlike a crab as she discovered the weird, egg-shaped ball that almost hit her. "H-here, catch!"

With all the strength her skinny arms could manage, she hurled the ball towards her sandy-haired acquaintance, only for it to barely grace the half way mark and bounce out of control.

"Almost!" He laughed, and chased after it again.

Izzy smiled to no one, and returned to her pilgrimage inside, where she was immediately rounded on by another.

"Izzy!" That girl from Science jumped out of nowhere, spooking her.

...Emily? Was that her name?

"You weren't paying attention, were ya Izz?" The blonde exclaimed.

"I just, umm..." Izzy stammered. "My book was fun."

"That same old book? Again?" Emily rolled her eyes. "How many times have you read it now? Twenny?"

"Oh, easy," the girl let out a sly grin.

"That's basically a marriage, Brizzy Izzy!" Emily's laugh was mirthful. "I couldn't read the date twenny times, forget a whole book!"

"Well maybe that's why I'm in the higher English class than you?" Izzy bit her bottom lip. And Emily gasped in surprise.

"Ohh, ya cheeky bugger!" Her face was torn between shock and delight. "How long you been keepin' that hidden?!"

Izzy sidestepped as the blonde prepared another dive, and was forced to run through the sweltering heat, Emily and her banter hot on the girl's heels.

Maths class was the lesson Izzy was least looking forward to. It began at 12:36, a couple of minutes late. The reason why was explained when Mr Miller dragged in Rangi Kauwhata, then literally sat the young man into his chair. The recluse fixed his teacher with a grumpy stare, and received a secret high five from the boy to his left.

"Kiwi's late again...!" Someone snickered from the back corner, which escalated into a gentle ripple of laughter through the entire classroom.

"And unless y'all shut up," Mr Miller's distinctive American accent shouted over everyone else. "You'll be late with him. After school. Now let's learn some Math already."

With a sigh, Izzy pulled two textbooks out of her bag; one full of equations, the other full of lines. Numbers might have been important for life, but they were not her friends. They taunted her with their confusing meanings and pointless definitions. Not like words. Words were subtle yet honest. And that's why the doorstop of a novel in her bag was so tem-

"Hey Izz. Hear ya nearly got munted by a rugby ball earlier." Tyler Barnes hissed at her from the back right.

"Y-yeah, I wasn't looking where I was going, and-" Izzy began.

"That's a funny way to ask what the answer to number four is, Tyler!" Mr Miller hollered from the other side of the room.

"Agh! I uhh, well...!" Tyler spluttered his response.

"It's alright sir! He just wanted to borrow some refill!" Izzy piped up. She tore a couple of sheets off her pad of paper, and handed them to the boy.

"...well alright then," Mr Miller frowned. "By the way Tyler, do you know the answer to number four?"

"You're a legend, Brizzy," Tyler hissed at her again, "Err... x equals seven?"

"...I'll let you off," said Mr Miller. "Next time you wanna cheat, make it less obvious alright?"

Tyler cracked a grin. "Got it, sir."

And at the teacher's direction, two dozen or so kids immersed themselves in the busy murmur of concentration. Some efforts added up easily, while others only multiplied their workload. Young Izzy's attempts only brought headaches though, with the numbers and symbols dancing across her page tauntingly, and no amount of doodling could stop them.

Izzy furrowed her brow, and scribbled out an obviously wrong attempt. No matter what, n certainly did not equal a picture of a duck. But before she knew it, the bell clanged furiously and the lesson was over, and all she had to show for it was a few equations and a scribbled out doodle. Where did the time go?

"Alright, those who didn't make it to question ten or better have homework tonight." Mr Miller commanded. "Those who did, good work. Til next time, guys!"

Izzy withered slightly at the thought of homework. That took up valuable reading time. But she only had herself to blame, zoning out for almost the entire lesson. Her chair scraped across the wooden floor, and with a sigh she made for the door. The kids exploded from their classrooms as lunch reared its ugly head, facing down the daily struggle for good spots in the lunch queue. Being fed first meant better food, and more time to actually enjoy their lunch. So no sooner had Izzy left her classroom was she swept away in a tide of hungry students. Her ponytailed head bobbing along in the waves of Darwinian beanpoles, she struggled along the best she could, grasping at the corner of the bathroom on her way past.

Her stomach growled in protest, but as much as she wanted to follow its will and feed herself, she waited for the crowds to thin out, and scuttled into the bathroom. Because her mind was racing and she didn't know why.

Izzy ran the taps and splashed some cold water on her face. Her reflection in the mirror was definitely there, but something didn't feel quite right, like she was still dreaming. Something lingered in the air, a hint of a shadow that she couldn't quite grab at, but still it lingered. Something dear to her.

That stark revelation forced a frown from her demure features. Her life wasn't bad, was it? Living with her aunt and uncle in sunny Darwin?

So why was she crying?

It wasn't just water from the taps, either. Hot angry tears blistered her ducts, threatening to drop with even the slightest provocation. It was with a sniffle, then a whimper, that Isabelle Langley realised... something wasn't right here.


	14. Family Crisis

The wind howled and his mind roared, as the car door slammed. "...s-sorry!"

Cell phone clenched in his hand as if it were a grenade, its little purple charm flapped about helplessly against the tempest as a man in his thirties stormed across the gravel pathways towards the ancestral building in the distance.

Was it always windy here? He contemplated with a grimace as his fist pummelled the neglected mahogany, "C'mon already..."

If it were possible, the house had become even more neglected since his last visit. What he had previously suspected as a mere crack in the window to his right now had a perfectly stubborn plant sprouting through it, and the garden hedges were weeping from their desperate need of attention. Was the old man still alive, even? At this rate, he was going to have to tidy the place himself.

"Open up, sir...!" Johnson fumed, his fist hammering the tired grain. "Either you let me in, or I'll have to f-force my way in... sir!"

His phone flashed up at him, 'low battery', just as the door buzzed open, and Johnson wasted no time in putting a barrier between himself and the outside. Immediately he choked on dust. Maybe it would've been better to just let this place rot. That way its lovely proprietor would feel right at-

Johnson caught himself before his thoughts carried him somewhere unpleasant. He couldn't just condemn the man, no matter how condemnable he typically was. His fingers threatening to break the phone in his hand, he marched up the spiral staircase a dusty, angry whirlwind.

The portraits of his boss' ancestors had definitely turned a blind eye by now, caked so thick with dust that they couldn't even be seen, forget be nosy. With Johnson's every polished footstep disturbing the pristine shambles, he didn't even knock.

"Boss... it's me." He announced, not even acknowledging the state of the room. "And I hate to barge in like this, but I have to-"

"Ah, excellent timing as always," the boss' breathy grunt interrupted. "Be a good boy there, and find me another wine. I'm rather bored of Bordeaux, and would rather perhaps a Pinot g-"

"In a moment, sir." Johnson's hands were shaking at his own audacity. "I have something v-v-very important to ask you!"

"More important than your pay check?" The boss tapped his long, slender fingers together. "...very well. Proceed."

Johnson took in a heavy sigh. So heavy in fact that it made him feel woozy, and he had to take another. "B-boss..." he was already stammering. "I've... I've just gotten off the phone from Camp Connect. You know, the one I let my daughter go to...?"

"I'll trust that you've mentioned it before," the boss' hand waved dismissively.

"Y-yessir, many times," Johnson chewed his tongue. "Anyway, like I was saying. I rang them up to ask when my little girl would be back in New York, so I could pick her up... and do you know what they said sir? D-d-do you-"

"I have a suspicion you're about to tell me," The old man rolled his tired eyes.

Johnson suppressed a growl. "...ungh! Yes sir, I am! Camp Connect said, and I quote, 'Mr Johnson, your daughter Lydia was never rostered on with us'! So here's my really important question, s-sir!"

An arm grasped, and swivelled the boss' armchair around. And for once, Johnson wasn't looking just fearfully at his employer;

"Do you know where my daughter is, MISTER Aster?!"

Darkness. Endless swathes of darkness glared back at the employee. Even Johnson himself had to back away from the sheer nothing reflected in his boss' face. Was there anything he cared about?

"Hah, an an inspired question indeed, Johnson," Aster's voice had taken on a harsher tone. "I believe it's time for that Pinot Grigio now, Johnson. No, in fact make it a Sauvignon. And pour yourself a glass too, boy."

"...fine," Johnson huffed. His blood was already coming close to the boil as he marched down two flights of stairs to retrieve his employer's selected bottle from the wine cellar.

"...h-here you go sir," He handed his employer the dusty bottle. "I couldn't bring another glass. I couldn't find one that wasn't all spidery."

"...I see. Well I'm not sharing a glass with you, Johnson." Aster had already filled his glass, mixing it into the dregs of its predecessor. "That's just disgusting."

"That's quite alright sir, I have to drive anyway." Johnson's stab of bravery stung like a hot poker. A bizarre, almost addictive sort of agony in the pit of his stomach.

"Suit yourself, boy..." Aster took a heavy draught from his glass.

The wind rattled at the windows outside, punctuated by the occasional rumble of thunder in the distance. Aster would simply nurse his wine, in front of his increasingly jumpy employee.

"...S-sir!" Johnson eventually stammered out. "Are you going to answer my question?"

"Question?" More wine trickled into Aster's glass. "Ohh, oh yes, that question. Rather a rash assumption, isn't it Johnson? That your daughter was chosen for my experiment? Wouldn't that be a conflict of interest?"

"N-not for me, sir! I wanted nothing to do with this experiment of yours in the first place!" Johnson retorted. "But my daughter is missing, just one week after those damn watches were sent out, and I think that's just too much of a coincidence... sir!"

"Ahaa, and you're here to tell me that young... Lydia, was it? That you've exhausted every other option, and she's not simply lying in a ditch somewhere in Pennsylvania, a mere victim of chance? A vulnerable prize for some lowlife? One who exhausted _her_ options?"

Johnson reacted before his mind could process the consequences. One swing of his arm saw the glass propelled from his boss' hand, and into the adjacent wall with a shatter.

"...that was my last good glass," Aster remarked with a noted sigh, and simply picked up the bottle instead.

"H-how... could you be so careless?" Johnson's hands were shaking. "After all these years of tireless service, the lawsuits, the back-alley jobs, the deception... you still have no respect for me? After all I've done for you?!"

"Calm yourself Johnson, I have plenty respect for you," wine sloshed at the bottom of his bottle. "I just believe that perhaps you should apply some logic to a situation before instantly accusing your employer. Foolish would be an under-"

"Well maybe you should give me a real answer instead of a political one, sir!" Johnson rounded on his boss. "I'll be blunt sir, as I encourage you to be; is my daughter Lydia trapped inside that... that damned game of yours?!"

Aster's free hand shot forwards, and grasped at his employee's neck. "You want blunt, Johnson? Well I suppose that can be arranged."

Johnson scrabbled and spluttered to remove the claw-like appendage that was clutching at his windpipe, as Aster merely took another lengthy draught of wine.

"Now take a good look at this screen, Johnson," Aster rotated the computer screen towards his hapless employee. "Let us play devil's advocate, and assume your daughter Lydia is in here. Would you care to find her?"

The grip on his throat was released, and Johnson crumpled to his knees. His lungs were burning, his eyes were streaming and his throat was sore, but if there were any chance of finding his daughter, it was being shown to him. So he collapsed upon the screen to find... symbols? Percentage signs, pointy bracket things, dashes, and a whole load of numbers.

"I...I can't read this, sir."

"Precisely," his boss audibly sneered. "So tell me, Johnson. Which bit of data would you rather save? This section here? This bunch of numbers? Or how about this rather attractive nest of symbols here? I must remind you that any change in the coding could very well endanger countless lives. After all, who knows what-"

"YOU know, s-sir!" Johnson again plucked up some courage. "You wrote all this! So surely you can tell what's what?!"

"Perhaps I can, Johnson. But who am I to decide what bit of data is most important?" Said Aster. "Besides, I've had far too much wine to be concentrating on delicate coding w-"

"Are you telling me, sir," Johnson interrupted his boss. "That you are willing to keep all these people, your own grandson included, trapped in there?"

"Well it's an extremely delicate balance, this world of mine," The boss glugged down more wine. "Like I said, even the slightest change in coding could prove catastrophic. So I'm not about to let you play Hero, got that Johnson?"

There was a smash as Johnson backed into the table, knocking a photo frame to the floor. Falling to his knees, the man grasped at his face, eyes wide. "S-so you're telling me, sir, that there's nothing that can be done? No way that these poor kids can be saved?!"

"Of course there is, Johnson. There's just nothing we can do, aside from sit back and watch the magic unfold." Aster clicked a few buttons on his keyboard, and the coding was replaced with a bunch of charts and statistics. "After all, it would be despicable for a scientist to fabricate results. Wouldn't it, boy?"

Johnson raised a hand to his mouth. "...okay then, sir. I-I understand."

"Good. I'm glad you understand. We took a while, but we got there eventually."

"Y-yeah, eventually," Johnson forced a smile. With a flourish, the man fled from that dusty old man in his dusty old house. Slamming the door to a surprisingly calm evening, Johnson's grip tightened on the phone in his hand.

"...y-yeah, police?" He grimaced. "I've got something you guys might wanna hear."

* * *

"Raaaagh!"

A murderous roar thundered, followed by a petrified shriek. The creature's enormous fist smashed into the plateau, scattering rocks everywhere. Between them, a young girl dodged desperately, hugging a bloodied bundle to her chest. Her breath was coming in hitches, and her legs burned from exhaustion, but there was no white knight to save her from this furious Rhydon. With another swing of its massive arm, it loosed several more boulders into the sky, raining chunks of rock down upon her!

"No no, please...!" The girl was tripping over her own feet in her bid to get away. There was a hop, a skip, and a stumble as a shower of sharp rocks flurried past her. Gravity robbed her of her balance, and her ankle paid the price, twisting under her weight.

"D-don't you worry Momo, I'll get us... s-safe!" She gasped, staggering away the best a busted ankle would let her. "J-just gotta... get to safety!"

Vision blurry from tears, sweat, nausea, the whole deal, the girl looked around for anything that would provide shelter. But in this endless savanna, there was nothing a tree could do to stop an angry Rhydon. That was just asking for trouble.

So into the nearest rock formation she bundled. Sharp and dirty rocks were not the best of company, but it definitely seemed preferable to being eaten alive by a Rhydon. She just had to hope against hope that it was stupid.

The ground shook with each footstep Rhydon took towards her location. Her heart was going to give her location away, it was beating that fiercely. It was tested again when the creature smashed its body into the pile of rocks, loosing several from the ceiling of her sanctuary and threatening to turn it into her grave. Were it not for the fist in her mouth - the teeth marks embedded in her knuckles - she would've screamed.

Suddenly, another enemy rappelled down from the roof of the cave. Fangs glistening in the limited light, the Spinarak didn't look any happier about its rude awakening as it hissed at the teenager.

"Sshh... shh!" She shivered out a response at it, really not wanting to fend it off as well. But another shriek escaped her system as Rhydon did the same. Its rugged body smashed into the little cave, and dropped more rocks onto the floor.

"Oh no!" The girl squeaked, and quickly scooped up the Spinarak before a rock could end it. More dust and dirt was shaken loose. This cave was going to collapse any second. Tears stung in her eyes; she was going to die here. She, Momo, and this poor dumb Spinarak were all doomed, and it was all her fault. Her fault for thinking she could handle it out here, alone. That the tough training would help Momo grow strong and evolve.

She cradled her bloodied mess of a Pokémon, and could do nothing to stem the flow. This was it. She could hear the Rhydon's heavy breathing just outside, looming ever closer. Her breathing was so sharp that it hurt. Despite the heat of the day, she shivered. Every body part she possessed was dripping with sweat. And Rhydon's shadow swallowed up the last of her daylight.

It let out a low, juddering growl, almost laughlike. The. There was a roar, and suddenly, more light fluttered into her cave as the Rhydon was knocked back!

The girl's eyes bolted ever wider as a rough grinding noise tore through the cave. She let the Spinarak go again, and dared creep closer to the mouth, only to have to shield her eyes as a flurry of sparks shot past!

A suppressed squeak escaped her lips, as a small metal Pokémon- definitely a steel type - surrounded the Rhydon's arm. It attempted and failed a lunge at the thing, which only ground itself against Rhydon's elbow joint. More sparks were spat out, and an actual scream escaped the girl. Rhydon was quick to follow in her example as the forearm was completely sawed off by the Steel Pokémon!

"Rhaaaashh!"It shrieked into the sky, as its rocky forearm thudded to the ground. Dark green, almost oily looking blood spurted out of the joint, and fury shone in Rhydon's face as it aimed a clumsy left arm swing at its metallic opponent.

"Klang, evade!" Came a voice, and the Steel Pokémon responded in barely a split second, weighting itself on one side and revolving out of the way as Rhydon's arm came crashing down beside it. Klang took the chance to spin its gears again, and left Rhydon with a painful looking friction burn across its face. The beast swung again at it and missed spectacularly, then lost its other arm as punishment. The limb crashed to the floor, and Rhydon's breathing was becoming more ragged by the minute.

"Watch for an Earthquake!" The faceless trainer called from wherever they were hiding, and sure enough the Rhydon responded in kind, jumping into the air and letting gravity do the work for it. Rhydon's weight creased the ground beneath it, sending out powerful shockwaves that once again threatened a cave-in for the girl.

But Klang smoothly evaded the cracking ground and vaulted off a raised ledge, tightening itself around Rhydon's neck. The monster gurgled, and more sparks flew between the two, but it was powerless to stop itself from disappearing in a flash of blue sparkles.

With a gentle jingle, the Rhydon's drop fell to the floor, and the girl dove back further into her safety cave as footsteps crunched across the gravelly ground to retrieve it.

"Protector... makes sense I guess," the surprisingly high voice muttered to themselves. "Looks like we're selling it then. Ahh well. Good work today Klang. That was a tough one."

"K-lannnn-g!" His Pokémon sparked in response, and the trainer audibly span around on one foot to carry on with wherever they were going. But wait! They were her hero! She couldn't just let them go un-thanked!

"W-w-waiiit!" She cried, stumbling out of the cave and almost tripping over her own feet in the process. The footsteps ceased.

"Th-thank you, whoever you are!" She shouted up at the sky, her eyes scrunched shut. She peered upwards, daring to sneak a peak at her valiant knight, only to find that they weren't as tall as she expected, "I-I was really in a bind back there, because my Pokémon isn't very strong, a-and I was stupid to train out here, and-and you, s-saved... oh."

Her eyes finally met his, only for her to find out that he was a head shorter than her. Oh.

"B-but you're tiny," her voice was a notch lower than before.

"What, you were expecting a towering giant?" The blonde midget frowned at her.

"W-well, actually..." the girl's expression was withering more and more with every word she said now. "I-I was kinda hoping it'd be all romantic, and that I'd find some true... forget about it. Grownup stuff, a kid like you wouldn't understand."

"Pff," the boy scorned. "You're still a kid yourself. And I didn't even know you were here until you burst from that cave and screeched at me."

"...ugh," the teenager's last dim hope just went out. "So what were you doing out here in the middle of nowhere?"

"...training." Said the blonde. "Isn't that what everyone's doing?"

"Training?" The teen grimaced at him. "How's a brat like you get that good?"

"Or maybe you're just shit, princess." The boy's words were venomous. "Anyone can be good at this. It just takes a bit of... know how."

"Y-yeah," the girl held her Pokémon tighter still. "Hey umm... sorry about calling you a brat. And a midget."

"You didn't call me a midget," the blonde boy's eyes narrowed.

"I...I kinda did in my head," she glanced away from his sharp blue eyes.

"Well, you were being honest at least," the boy sighed. "I take it you're about to ask for a favour?"

"How did-" she exclaimed.

"Why apologise to someone unless you need something from them?" The boy explained. "What's your name anyhow? Where you from?"

The girl took a startled step back at his sudden ask. "...Lydia, New York. Y-you?"

"...Max," the boy responded. "Used to live in Jersey, but then moved to Kentucky when I was nine. Sucks..."

"Pff, better than living in Jersey," Lydia scoffed, twirling a finger through her thick, dark curls. "Be glad you escaped that cess-"

"I liked Jersey, thank you." Max stomped his foot. "We lived in the city, and it my Grampa was only a state away, so he was easy to visit. Now he's like a whole day away instead of just a couple hours..."

Lydia gulped. "H-hey sorry, I didn't wanna make you upset. It was just a joke, alright? Besides, I know how you feel. My dad works for this freaky old guy out in PA, and my mom lives all the way out in Nebraska, so I'm like, always travelling between the two, and never see either of them, and-"

-you were wanting a favour?" Max interjected. "Fascinating as I'm sure your family issues are, I kinda need to get back to my training."

"...right!" Lydia ignored the sting. "We kinda got distracted there huh? I-I was wondering if you could help me get back to a centre? My little Eevee here ain't doin' so well, and-"

Max thrust an arm to his left. "That way. Maybe half an hour's walk."

"B-but!" Lydia tugged on the boy's hoodie before he could waltz off, "But I can't fight anything! Not with Momo in this condition!"

"...you named it Momo?" Max frowned. "A-anyway, not my problem. You should've thought of that before you decided to train out here."

"But wait! Don't leave me out here alone...!" Lydia dragged her feet. "I need... I need help. I'll pay you if you help me get back? I-I don't have much, but-"

She dug into her rucksack and desperately retrieved what little coin she could scrape up, however no sooner had she pulled out a half-handful was it knocked to the ground by Max. The dozen or so coins jingled across the savannah, and Lydia was about to dive on them, scoop them all up again, when she noticed what Max was holding.

"...I'm feeling charitable, so here. Just take it." He proffered a Hyper Potion. Without leaving her knees, Lydia received the aerosol from him.

"B-but-" she stammered, eyes gleaming.

"Consider it a loan." Max explained. "Promise me you'll survive and pay it back huh?"

"You want me to promise you I'll survive? Yet you're passing up a paid training opportunity?" Lydia frowned. "You're a strange kid, you know that?"

"Escort missions are a drag..." Max groaned, and tightened the strings on his hood before stalking away from the teen.

"...thank you for everything!" Lydia felt obliged to shout after him. He stopped for a moment, and continued without a word, his Klang floating after him diligently.

Suddenly, solitude crept up on her again. "O-Oh yeah!"

Carefully carefully, she bundled her blood-soaked t shirt onto the ground and unwrapped it, "Hey there, babygirl..."

Her Eevee was a tousled, pitiful mess. Deep claw marks had turned its midriff to ribbons, its fur all rough and matted together from a stomach blanching amount of dried blood. The thing twitched; Lydia let out the biggest of gasps. Her hand shook vigorously as she held onto the Hyper Potion.

Relief washed over her like the new tide as the healing spray worked its magic. The dried blood was loosened and washed out of Eevee's fur. The awful gash to its midriff was cleaned up a little bit. There was an audible crack as something about its chest snapped back into place. Life was breathed back into the poor thing.

"Oh, Momo..." she sobbed into its fur, "you had me so scared...!"

"Vee..." Eevee's breath drew out slowly. The little furball's eyes fluttered open, and it found the strength to wiggle back onto its feet. It span around in confusion once, and then tripped over again. "Veeyah?!"

"Whoa whoa, careful honey!" Lydia caught Eevee before it could hurt itself again. "Don't, you, scare me like that again, okay? I can't lose you, Momo..."

And Eevee was in danger of being squished from how tight her trainer was hugging it. But despite it all, a tiny purr emanated from its depths. Eevee was lifted up, so its dewey-eyed trainer could meet its gaze.

"Do you forgive me?" She gave a wet sniff.

"Eevee...?" The little Eevee mewled, and then began aggressively licking its trainer's face.

"Ewww...hoo-hoo-hahahah...!" Lydia burst into a giggle, "Aww, what did I ever do to deserve you?"

She rest the purring fluffball over her shoulder, and glanced around. "Was it... that way? Or this way?"

Lydia Johnson grimaced. Maybe she should've listened to that Max kid earlier.

"...that way," she made up her mind at last. Purrball in arms, she picked a direction. Right or wrong, she and Momo were very much alive!


	15. Invocation

*clack!*

The staple punched through, scarring the wood behind it. Paper rattled, and three more staples followed.

*clack!*

*clack!*

*cl-cl-click*

Padraig Browne sighed.

'Have you seen me?' the poster taunted back, bragging about the skinny young thing pictured on it. Flailing her arms aggressively to avoid being on camera... it was the best one he had.

Her ruby locks, and emerald eyes, tarnished... by the cheap black and white printing.

How many of these had he put up now? How long had he been doing it?

Padraig scratched at his stubble. He could feel the blood pounding in his feet as he forced his heavy gaze upon the memory of his little girl. Oh Aislin, give us strength...

A withered hand touched on his shoulder. Just da. The old man gave his son a meek smile, and pulled the lad into his arms.

Heavy eyes leaked, and heavy hearts sobbed. Every structure from here to Wexford must have had a poster on it, and yet still, it looked like she wasn't being found. Some had been vandalised. Many had been torn down again. Some had just blown away in the wind. Others, just ignored completely...

Padraig rootled around in his pocket, and counted out a small handful of coins. Mostly loose change; was there enough here for another batch?

The photocopy place was only a mile or so away. He could make it before nighttime, right?

He sighed again. If he was going to get any more posters put up tonight, he was going to have to get a move on. There was plenty of time to rest when his daughter was found. Until then, there was enough left in him for one more round.

* * *

"Alright, one more round!" Came Aurelie's excited holler, as a Noctowl shattered into the dusk, leaving behind a handful of its feathers.

"Oh jaysus... another?" Caitlyn wiped her glistening brow. The pair had been at it for a solid three hours, and while the training was a huge help for both her Litleo and her funds, she had to call time, because poor Leon could barely stand from exhaustion.

"Aw, he'll be fine! Give him a super potion and he'll perk right up!"

"That's like sayin' ye can beat an all-nighter with an energy juice," The redhead knelt down, and gave Leon a stroke. "He needs rest, not a half hour fix. He doesn't have yer Luxio's stamina."

"Oh, so you're just gonna leave poor ol' me alone out here, to get eaten by some, I dunno, Snorlax or something?" Aurelie nibbled her finger.

"Yeah, like we'd run into one of those," Caitlyn scoffed. "Tell ye what; walk me back?"

"Ohh, so I can be your bodyguard? Make yer marnin'... top? I tell ya now, I'm not singing."

"Such a shame." Despite everything, Caitlyn found herself smiling. This infectious, blue haired weirdo always had a certain way with words. Sure, they made no sense half the time, but for the effect they had, Aurelie was worth far more than any rare drop.

At her trainer's whistle, Cleo returned to Aurelie's side, and the two had begun the trek back towards their town. It had been three weeks since the pair had started training together, and in that short time, Cleo had grown to literally twice Leon's size. Leon still had the edge when it came to speed and agility, but he tired quickly, while Cleo never seemed to. This put a dampener on their daily wrestling matches, of which Leon hadn't won a single one since Cleo evolved. Caitlyn couldn't help but feel the pang of jealousy rumble through her chest. Why was Cleo growing so much faster? Was she just bad at this? Sure, Litleo didn't evolve until level thirty-something, but the poor thing wasn't even keeping up any more, probably just slowing Cleo and Aurelie down, if anything.

A Yanma buzzed past her, shocking her back to reality.

"...o-oh, and just fer reference; no one in Ireland has ever said 'top of the marnin'. That's just somethin' the yanks made up."

That seemed like a fair contribution. Hopefully Aurelie wouldn't realise that she was spacing out.

"…oh. Well, good to know!" The Canadian beamed. "I mean, that's got nothin' to do with your plans for tomorrow or anything, but that's a useful little factoid there, KitKat!"

Well that was a bust. Caitlyn kicked herself for obviously letting Aurelie talk to herself for several minutes.

"Well I um… I might take it easy tomorrow if that's alright with yerself?" She suggested with a light shrug. "I mean, Leon could do with a rest, and even the big man opstairs took a day off every once in a while, y'know?"

Aurelie frowned at her. "A-are you sure? Because your Litleo ain't gonna get stronger by resting, and you need the money eh?"

"Ohh, one day'll be fine, Arly," she still couldn't pronounce that damn name. "Tell ye what, the mornin' after, you find me the biggest, ugliest Garbodor ye can, and we'll beat it up together."

"Alllrighty then, if you're sure KitKat," said Aurelie. "But I tell ya, if you're thinkin' of doing a sneaky one and trainin' without me tomorrow, I'm gonna beat you up instead, ya got that?"

Caitlyn stopped in her tracks and stared the bluenette down. Three weeks they'd been training together now, and she still couldn't tell whether or not the girl was being serious. She had to sooner or later, but about something this silly? Maybe she was just overthin-

"Well, I guess this is where we go our separate ways for the night huh?" Aurelie's volume derailed her train of thought once again. "You have fun tomorrow, okay KitKat? Make sure you eat good, and put those giant feet o'yours up for a few hours."

"Hey, my feet are not giant!" Caitlyn scowled in response, hiding one foot behind the other and then suddenly realising her conundrum. "Yours are just tiny!"

"Nuh uh! Average!" Aurelie taunted back. Then the Canadian lunged forwards at a startling speed as she wrapped her arms around Caitlyn's skinny frame. The redhead couldn't do a thing about it, and was forced to just accept her warm embrace.

"Therrrrre ya go!" The hug was tightened to bone crushing levels. "Now you, you go and rest okay?! This is me, going, heading towards my inevitable doom where I'll be eaten by a Snorlax, and you'll feel guilty, and you'll feel sad that you were never able to confess your love!"

"Such a shame that'll be," Caitlyn cracked a grin despite it all. "G'wan, get goin' a'ready before I change m'mind."

Aurelie gave her friend a meek, little smile. She whistled to her Luxio, who pounced to her side instantly, before breaking the gaze at last and taking small, almost awkward looking steps the other way. Cleo mewled at her in obvious confusion, but she just shooshed the electric cat with a ruffling of the little quiff on its head.

And suddenly Caitlyn's world was quiet. And tiny. Painfully so. Did Aurelie and her energy really make this much of a difference?

Everything just seemed so much heavier and spaced apart. The little smattering of villa things were only ten metres or so apart normally, she could've sworn. But without Aurelie and her volume to keep things lively, Caitlyn was reminded of just how alone she was in this place. With a shiver, she could feel the isolation sink in, and above it all she just felt… vulnerable. What if something huge burst out of nowhere and attacked her? Would she and Leon be able to handle it on their own?

Poor Leon couldn't catch its own tail, forget fight off a big threat single-handedly.

"C-c'mon Leon, let's get a good night's sleep eh?" She scooped up her Litleo. As if to spite her, the cat had managed to snare its tail between its teeth, and seemed entirely too pleased about it.

Caitlyn shot a glance over to Max's villa; still lifeless and empty. She hadn't seen the lad in a few days now, and while she hadn't been paying all that much attention, being busy with her own training, she couldn't ignore that little niggle of concern. Even if he was a bit of a gobshite, but that was just because he was eleven and full of himself. All kids that age are. He wasn't a bad kid, not really. Maybe he was just taking his training seriously at last.

Yeah, that was what he was doing.

Caitlyn breathed a sigh of relief, and closed the rest of the world away. She rummaged through her pockets, and pulled out the day's spoils; a Pokedoll, two Super Potions, an X Defend and… a spoon.

She almost didn't take the spoon. But once again, her plucky Canadian friend insisted it would at least be worth something, even if that was just eating a yoh-gurt without a mess, to quote her. Her stomach gurgled pitifully as she checked the fridge and found nothing worth eating. Not even a yoh-gurt. Leon happily dove into a handful of kibbles though, and she hoped that would keep him distracted for long enough as she ducked into the bathroom, and ran her arm under the taps. Her tricep stung as freezing cold water seared the gash across it, courtesy of a Roselia that got a little too enthusiastic with its Razor Leaf. Her stomach grumbled again, a timely reminder that she was going to have to start making some real money, and fast. Her food supplies were running low, and the prospect of living off of rice and bread was losing its appeal quickly. Her last treat was a slither of cake she was lucky to get on cheap at the little corner shop a week ago, and she could still remember the tangy, peppery taste of the icing. That little treat cost her two hours' worth of training, and she only bought it because Aurelie insisted.

'C'mon already, you're wasting away!' the Canadian had teased. 'Are ya actually tryin' to get back to your birth weight or something?'

Caitlyn had scowled back at her, almost refusing to buy the thing out of spite. But the moment the bright orange Qualot icing had touched her lips, she'd wolfed the entire thing in moments. Aurelie had spent the rest of the day taunting her about it, but she refused to give the Canadian the satisfaction.

"Ungh…" Caitlyn groaned, shaking the memories from her mind. She took extra care in hanging her new favourite Mareep cardigan on the bathroom door before finding something that looked like nightwear, and wrapping up warm under the covers. No sooner had her head touched the pillow however, did she feel the heavy thud of Leon atop her chest. His claws threatened to pierce skin through bedsheets and pyjamas as the Litleo kneaded at her chest, purring loudly.

"A'right you, settle down," she ran a hand across Leon's back, and the thing collapsed on top of her. His two eyes had dissolved into mere slits, and the flame on his head, while a pleasant nightlight, made things awfully clammy up close. It simmered down to a little smoulder as his purring sent vibrations throughout Caitlyn's system, leaving her alone with her thoughts once again. Maybe it was time to actually get serious with all of this, she mused, as a sudden and heavy yawn took precedence. With the lead weight on her chest now snoring peacefully, there was little she could actually do now, aside from get to sleep, and see where her mood took her tomorrow.

Thinking to herself that she really needed a way of killing time that wasn't Pokémon training, and then a way to afford it, Caitlyn slowly nodded off.

* * *

Her breathing came easy the next morning, with the stark realisation that Leon was no longer crushing her chest with his weight. He had instead migrated to a corner of the bed near her feet, curled up in a ball and still purring loudly. Hunger gnawed in her stomach as she sat up and worked her stiff joints. Sleeping on her back the whole night had turned her hair into something of a haystack, so she made half an effort to smooth it back down again with her fingers.

Her stomach griped at her again as she opened the cupboards with a forced optimism, only for it to wither instantly as the same boring ingredients stared back at her. Breakfast options were rice, increasingly stale bread, or cereal without milk.

"Ugh, feck it all," Caitlyn shunted the cupboard door shut. "C'mon Leon, get up. We're off fer a walk."

In the time it took her to blink and yawn, Leon had already burst from the bed and strewn the sheets across the floor. Leon danced around excitedly as Caitlyn found some suitable clothes to wear. She used to scoff and judge silently at all the people who came into the shop in just their pyjamas or a onesie or something, for a pint of milk and a packet of cigarettes, but now she knew how they felt.

Caitlyn hadn't reached that point just yet, or at least she didn't think she had, but the appeal was definitely growing on her. Pushing herself and Leon to the limits every day, and making just barely enough to scrape by… that wasn't living. If she was going to have any chance at making a life for herself in this stupid fake world, then she was going to have to stop relying on Aurelie and make her own money. So Caitlyn pulled an arm through her favourite cardigan, scooped up yesterday's drops, and ushered Leon out through the front door.

Blind to whether or not Aurelie had come home last night, Caitlyn marched right past her villa thing and into the little corner shop to trade off her goods. She left ten minutes afterwards, armed with 1055 more poke and a box of pop tarts, keeping one super potion spare just in case.

"Right Leon," she inhaled the first of twelve. "Time te get seriouff with thiff… trainin' t'ing."

"Mrrow?" Leon squinted at her in obvious confusion. Already halfway through her next pop tart, she strode off towards the nearest open space she could find, her Litleo happily trotting at her heels.

* * *

"H-here, could you heal him up please?"

His battered, quivering hand extracted a pokéball from the pocket of his loaner hoodie, and Grant Langley collapsed backwards onto one of the many posh chairs littered throughout the pokecentre. After spending most of the night staggering around lost in the wilderness, the familiarity of another person was a near unfathomable pleasure, even if they were a lifeless NPC. Warm and inviting, it was almost like wading into a giant fruitcake. It even smelled suspiciously of cinnamon.

"Okeydokey!" The pink-haired pokecentre nurse gave her obligatory smile, and set Harry's pokéball down onto the machine, "…oh my, this one sure has taken a beating, hasn't it? Were you out training all night?"

"Uhh… you could say that," Grant gave a meek smile. The squashy armchair he'd fallen into was proving increasingly fatal.

"You shouldn't push the little ones so hard," the centre nurse's voice was becoming more and more echoey. "You'll be waiting a good two hours and forty minutes, is that okay?"

Grant's eyes peeled open. "…that's very specific."

"Oh yes," the centre nurse continued to ramble away. "Just as long as you're happy to…"

But her ramblings were lost on Grant, as the last of his resolve was lost to exhaustion and comfy chair gravity.

"Mister… Grant?"

"Mister Grant…?"

"Um, hello?"

With a snort, Grant snapped awake. It took a moment for his senses to come back to him, as the forever polite pink-haired pokecentre nurse swam back into his vision.

"There you are," she smiled again. "Your Pokémon has been fully healed."

In her hands was Harry's pokéball, another painful reminder that he'd just spent the last three hours or so dead to the world.

"W-well I uhh…" Grant squirmed forwards, wrestling his way out of the armchair. "Th-thanks… and sorry for falling asleep. I didn't mean to umm… how long were you waiting?"

"Exactly twelve minutes," the nurse's answer was so robotic and clinical that Grant had to take a step back. "But that's alright. We're not busy this morn-"

The bell on the door tinkled as it burst open, bringing with it a gaggle of other trainers and a bluster of cold air.

"E-escuse me, Senora!" A familiar sounding voice beckoned. "Could you uhh, heal our Pokémons, por favor?"

"Of course!" The nurse wasn't at all flustered by the swarm of trainers, "How many Pokémon need healing?"

The familiar voice turned around, of course revealing herself as Camila, and began counting heads, "Uno, dos… four, senora!"

Her two companions, who must've been Anibal and Pedro, handed two capsules to her, which she promptly gave to the nurse along with two of her own.

"Muchas gracias, senora," Camila beamed at the nurse, "Ah h-how long?"

"In total…" the nurse estimated, "about an hour and a half."

Grant's stomach lurched just a little.

"So don't go too far, okay you three?" the nurse smiled once again.

"Si si!" Camila gave the nurse a fervent kiss on each cheek, and turned back around, "o-oh, Grant? You are here!"

"Eheh, yeah…" Grant smiled awkwardly, having finally been noticed by the trio. "I had to get big Harry healed."

"Harry?" Camila frowned animatedly at him. "Who is Harry, Senor?"

"Oh, you remember my Makuhita?" Grant gestured to something that was waist height on him. "Well guess what? He evolved!"

"Evolve?" Camila's bushy eyebrows rose higher still. Then the lightbulb flashed. "Oh! That was muy fast, Senor! Bien!"

"I know eh?" Grant laughed. "Also I uh, noticed that you've caught something new?"

"New…?" She was piecing everything together. "Ohh, Nuevo! Si si, I ah, catch a new Pokémon, yes! Is a… how you say… Bunnelby?"

The word flew straight past Grant. He supposed that was some kind of rabbit Pokémon or something, from one of the newer games, maybe?"

"…I hate only knowing about half of this world," he chuckled, and fell back into the armchair. "B-because I haven't played any of the newer games, you see?"

"Ahh…" Camila slouched down next to him. Pedro and Anibal seemed immersed in a discussion about something completely different, and animatedly at that. Slowly, the teen brought her knees to her chin, and wrapped her arms around them. "So… you are up early? For training?"

"Er, you could say that," Grant was already feeling the chair's effects on him. "I went training with Harry yesterday, up by that big hill over," he yawned heavily, "o-over that way?"

"Si, si," Camila's face was squashed between her knees as she absorbed his every word.

"A-and yeah, I met this girl from the Netherlands with a weird as name, and she was making a map of the place." Grant's arms stretched out wide, gesturing square-ish shapes. "And she could speak like four languages too. But then this Heracross attacked us both, and she ended up catching the bugger, so that was okay. But then the hill collapsed, and took Harry and me with it!"

"Coll…apse?" Camila frowned. "Ohh, f-fall down?"

"Uh huh," Grant nodded. "A-anyway, me and Harry were basically surfing down this bloody mountain on a bit of rock, and Harry was punching all these Spearows outta the way, and we were swervin' left, and right, and left again, and-"

Grant was stopped in mid-sentence as a gentle bubble of giggling permeated his monologue. With a start, he noticed that Camila, but also Anibal, Pedro, the on-duty nurse and a couple of other trainers were all staring at him, with several varying attempts at holding back their laughter. With a quiver in his arms, he slowly sunk down back into the chair, and withdrew back into him.

"…sorry, got a bit carried away there." He chuckled, as clammy heat pooled in his stomach. "S-so yeah, we made it down to the bottom of the mountain, and there was this guy just waiting there for us. He was bloody sinister looking, with the big black cloak and raspy voice and everything. So what does he want from us? A battle of all things! Me and Harry go ahead and beat up his super Aggron or… something, and in return he offered us either a little marble kinda thing, or this here… orb?"

Remembering just how heavy the thing was at the last second, Grant wrenched the thing out of his hoodie pocket and thunked it down onto the table next to Camila.

"Ho…" She basked in its pinkish gleam, "You have this, Grant?"

"Ayup," he shrugged. "And I've no bloody clue what it is, what it does, what it's worth, or… anything, really. So I'm hoping someone here does? If not, I'll probably just sell it or something, because it looks valuable eh?"

"Hmm…" Camila was still staring into the fuzzy pink depths of the orb, "Maybe is like item especial, Senor? Like ah, you have item, and super strong Pokémon is... there? Pokémon legendario…?"

"Legendario?" The language barrier couldn't stop Grant's mind from racing. "S-so you think these little orb things can summon legendary Pokémon? A-and then what?"

"We fight them."

Both Grant and Camila looked around to find that Anibal and Pedro had tuned into their conversation.

"If you have item for Pokémon legendario, maybe we find it, and fight it?" Anibal shrugged. "And like in the games, you open up new place to explore?"

Pedro jabbered something to him, and he nodded in agreement, "Si si, muy bien. So if we fight lots of Pokémon legendarios, we beat the game, a-and go… home?"

Home… Grant's stomach twisted at the mere thought of the word.

"You… could be onto something there," Grant took a moment, and nodded in agreement. "But even so… how many? And which ones? Isn't there like… fifty of them?"

"Cinco…?" Pedro questioned, and Anibal shook his head. "No no, even more, Senor. Hopefully we will not have to fight all of them, eh?"

"That'd be fun…" Grant frowned. "Even more than fifty? There was like, twenty back when I stopped playing, and even that was too many…"

"But we can answer different question… maybe!" Camila chipped in. "Anibal, la Pokemon L-Luna Cresciente. El nombre?"

"Luna Cresciente…?" Anibal brought a hand to his chin, and the two continued babbling at each other in Spanish, leaving Grant feeling even more out of place than he did already. Camila was flapping her arms at Anibal like some kind of bird, and he in turn gestured with an enormous curved shape. Pedro looked just as confused as Grant, who shrugged back in response.

But his mind was buzzing, making a feeble attempt to tie some knowledge together in the hopes of arriving at an intelligent sounding conclusion. Luna, one of the words the Spaniards were shouting at each other, Grant knew that meant moon, because of that silly cartoon Izzy loved to watch with the black cat in it. Cresciente, he could take a guess at as well, but didn't that Milou girl say something similar about her map? Halve maan or something, meaning half… moon?

"Wait a second…" Grant sprang to his feet. "Moon? Were you saying this Pokemon looks like a moon?"

"Err," Camila was visibly taken aback. "Y-yes, Senor, a little bit? But also it look like a umm…"

She flapped her arms like wings again, "wak, wak wak?"

"Duck?" Grant frowned. "Moon duck? Weird. E-either way, I-I… I think I know where we can find it!"

"Awa?" Camila gasped at him. "Y-you know? Where?!"

"Remember that girl from the Netherlands who was making a map?" Grant explained, "w-well she had a point marked out on her map that she'd named halve maan something or other. And I-I think that means half-moon! Which means that unless she's just really bloody creative with naming things, she had some kinda reason to name it that right?! I-I think if we go there, and do the right thing with this orb, it'll… appear?"

A hushed silence followed his big epiphany. Even Grant wasn't entirely sure he understood what he'd just said, but he couldn't take it back now. The information was out there.

"Hmm…" Anibal mused. "Do you… know where, Grant?"

"I... umm," Grant faltered. Sure, he saw the map, and both relative points, but even if he could trust his navigation skills, he was still trusting a little kid that could have been using her imagination. "I can't be completely sure, mate. Maybe?"

"...Oh," Grant could hear the disappointment in Anibal's voice. All of the excited energy that had been slowly building up in the room was suddenly sucked out, as if someone had pulled out a plug. "W-well, is probably too early to fight super strong Pokemons anyway, no?"

"Y-yeah, we should pace ourselves," Grant rubbed at his elbow. "No point in rushing, otherwise we won't stand a chance of beating this bloody game."

The three Spaniards shared a glance that Grant couldn't quite identify, so he cleared the air with a cough. "B-but that's okay guys! Because we've got stuff to tell the rest of the village! And after that, you know what else?"

The three of them just stared back despondently. He was starting to learn why he'd never been picked for the captain's position back home.

"Training," he smiled meekly. "A-and lots of it!"


	16. Missing Links

The air was cheery, thick with smoke and laughter. The glasses clinked and alcohol flowed as the jazz trumpeted through the atmosphere, just a typical Saturday afternoon in New Orleans.

But among the jazzy rhapsodies, was a single bluesy bassline hiding himself in one corner. With a sigh, the man steadied his drinking hand, and corrected his grip on a bouquet of violets in his other. Purple had always been her favourite colour.

"Well well..." Someone folded their arms. "If it ain't Theodore Laverne. Where you been, boy?"

"I told ya Benny, Theodore was my father," the man at the bar corrected him. "Call me Teddy, like I told ya. An' I've been... busy."

"I'll say," Benny the barkeep shook his head fondly. "I ain't seen ya in weeks. You in to steady ya nerves, Teddy?"

"...could say that," Teddy pursed his lips and glanced away. "I'll take a double."

"You got it," Benny smirked, and pulled out a glass. There was the gentle scratching of metal on glass, and a new, mature sting wafted into the smoky bar as Teddy's glass was filled halfway up with a glimmering bronze liquid.

"Thanks buddy," Teddy offered the barkeep a polite, albeit weak smile. The smell was an old friend on his nostrils, a liquid reminiscence that burned his throat with memories.

"Mmmhmm!" Teddy coughed. This stuff must've gotten stronger over the years.

"You ain't fallin', are ya?" Benny gave his patron a serious look. "'Cause as much as I love ya custom, I don't wanna see you lose yourself in here, you got me?"

"Don' worry Benny, it's just the one." Teddy took another sip from his glass, and flinched.

"I'll hold you to it," Benny scratched at his head. "Least you gettin' outside, brother. They flowers for a new lady?"

Teddy's smile withered. "Not while I'm still wearin' this, Benny."

He wiggled the golden ring on his finger at the barkeep. "An' I ain't touched them games neither. Matter of fact, I been workin' doubles. Lotta them."

Teddy nudged his black-rimmed glasses farther up his nose with his whisky glass, before bracing for another siege.

"Well, good to see you're on the up an' up," said Benny, as he noticed another customer across the bar. "I'll leave you to it, Teddy. What can I getcha, my man?"

Benny left him to soak his thoughts in more alcohol. The liquid seethed as Teddy downed the rest of his glass, and instantly his face shrivelled up from it. He was starting to remember why he gave this stuff up.

His feet were running away with him as he made his way back out of the bar again, bouquet clutched desperately in one hand. The blurry faces of people he once called friends swarmed, their expressions ranging from surprised to concerned to unimpressed to... just blurry. That scotch was hitting far too quickly.

The bar door swung open, and brought with it a blast of crisp, cool air, shocking Teddy back to his senses. Two deep lungfuls of the stuff had his balance coming back to him - at least enough to walk in a straightish line, anyway. The whisky still flowed though; that was enough.

Teddy rounded the corner just in time to catch a streetcar as it passed, and an old dear was kind enough to change him up a buck. Two dings of a bell and one timely swing had him looking perfectly sober as he dismounted at the third stop. Teddy rubbed at his tired eyes, straightened out his overalls and readjusted the flowers in his right.

"...she ain't changed a bit," he sighed. Even in the winter, this park somehow still looked glorious. Sunshine dappled in through the naked branches of the trees, sparkling off of the slippery cobblestone paths.

It had been twelve years since he first stepped foot in here, where he and a high school sophomore named Alex had snuck away from the Mardi Gras parade. Mama Mounier was furious when she discovered that her perfect little granddaughter had run off with this 'couillon', in her own words.

Despite ten years of marriage and a kid, Mama Mounier still called him couillon. He'd eventually decided that it was a compliment... of sorts.

Teddy laid his flowers to rest at the foot of an old timey wooden gazebo. The thing must've been here as long as New Orleans itself, it was that... rustic.

"Figured I'd find you here," a voice from nowhere. Teddy barely managed to not jump.

"W-Well, ya can't help mem'ries, can ya?" He stood back up to address the speaker. With his impeccably crisp bottle green suit, sunglasses, perm and awful beige scarf, this man couldn't have looked more out of place if he'd tried.

"Doin' okay, Lawrence?" Teddy gave the man a polite smile. "The look on ya face tells me you've got news."

"Well deduced," Lawrence fixed the cuffs on his suit. "I was considering hiring an assistant, you know? How would you-"

"Awrite buddy, let's not insult the both'a'us," Teddy grinned despite it all.

"As you wish," Lawrence gave a light shrug. "You're absolutely right, I do have news surrounding the umm..."

"you can say it, buddy,"

"The disappearance."

Teddy thought he was prepared. Boy did he overestimate himself. Like ice trickling down his spine, the thought still forced a shiver. Next thing he knew, Lawrence had approached him, and pulled out one of those tablet doodads from somewhere.

"Now, I found some security footage," the man explained. "I'll warn you that you may find it a bit upsetting."

"A-alright." Teddy steeled himself. Immediately his stomach twisted with acrid bile as the recording flickered on. And then again when two hauntingly familiar figures floated into sight on the grainy footage.

The tears prickled. His babygirl and little man... they were both right there. If only he could just pull them out of the screen right now, and be done with this nightmare. Despite it all, Teddy found himself smiling as his beleaguered wife chased after their manic four year old. Stopping him just before he could run into a busy street. Little Ty was holding onto a package of some sort, and decided to tear it open in the middle of that same busy street.

Some papers blew away in the wind as Alex practically shouldered the boy, and dashed across the road before the lights could turn green.

"Oh Ty, ya lil' rascal..." Teddy rubbed his eyes. Not that there were tears to hide or anything. Nosiree.

"Keep watching Theo, here's an important part." Lawrence pawed at him for attention again.

"I told ya Lawrence, call me Ted-" Teddy began, but the sight of his two wife and kid disappearing in a flash of blue light stopped him instantly.

A fresh wave of guilt seethed from within, and Teddy had to cover his face as the tears welled up again. "God... dangit!"

"Hey hey whoa, that's a bit harsh," Lawrence balked at him. "You sure you wanna insult the big man?"

"Insult?" Teddy's eyes were streaming. "If he can do somethin' like that, he can expect a lil' criticism, you hearin' me?!"

"That's exactly my point, Th-Teddy," Lawrence raised his hands slowly. "You saw what happened there. Didn't look like an act of God to me, did it for you?"

Teddy grappled at his forehead. "I... I guess not."

"Good man," Lawrence gave him a pat on the shoulder. "But here's the good news; I think I've found out who _is_ to blame."

Teddy took his hand away, and turned to the man kneeling next to him. "You kiddin' me?"

"With something this serious?" Lawrence managed an almost coquettish smile. "Look, wind back a few minutes on the recording here, and..."

Lawrence spent a couple of minutes fiddling with his tablet, and Teddy had enough sense to look away this time.

"Alright, here you go Ted."

Once again Teddy steeled himself.

"Watch closely, okay?"

Lawrence hit a button, and this time the video played itself in super slow-motion. The papers that his little boy let blow away fluttered slowly towards the camera. Suddenly, Lawrence stopped the playback, and showed his guest a blurry image of... some papers in the wind?

"Awrite Lawrence, what'm I s'posed to be lookin'at?" Teddy frowned at it.

"See this here?" Lawrence pointed to the image. "That's a company logo. It might not look like much now, but I've cleaned it up, and put together an image..."

Back onto the tablet the man went. Teddy couldn't help but scoff at all this fancy stuff, even if it was supposed to help.

"...and I came up with this," said Lawrence, again showing his accomplice the screen. A large blue letter E with criss-crossing black lines was perched quite happily atop what looked like a small campfire. It was... nice, Teddy supposed.

"So this is s'posed ta help my wife an' son?" Teddy raised an eyebrow at it.

"Yeesh, that's optimistic." Lawrence balked. "You're expecting to find them alive? I'm doubting your chances, buddy."

A little sugar coating wouldn't have hurt.

"You ain't never been married, have ya Lawrence?" Teddy sighed.

"Well umm... actually no," Lawrence gave a light shrug. "Though me and my boyfriend are engaged for July next year, so you can't pull that card much longer my man."

"Boyfriend?" Teddy's gaze rose just slightly. "Well, glad ta hear it buddy. Either way, you get this sorta... instinct. An' I'm tellin' y'all, they're alive."

"...well, just don't get your hopes up, okay Ted?" Lawrence tightened his scarf. "Anyway, here's why it'll help. I was able to trace that image, and it turns out you're not alone. In fact, there's hundreds of instances all over the world. Worst thing is, they all occurred within a day or two of each other."

Lawrence pocketed his tablet, and grabbed Teddy by the hands.

"Teddy. This was all planned. All part of some sick scheme. I don't know why, or even how, but I've got a good idea of a who."

"Y-you do?" Teddy's voice was baited.

"I think so," Lawrence smirked. "Turns out all these 'devices' were mailed out across the world. But they all came from one place; a factory in Pennsylvania. I thought I'd tell you first, seeing as I was in the neighbourhood, but all the clues add up, and I'm leaving for PA ton-"

"-an' you're still here?!" Teddy spluttered. "Go, man, go! Get that Sonofabitch who did this!"

Teddy straightened up, and offered the man a handshake.

"An' if you nail the rat bastard, I'll be ya best man. How's that sound, buddy?"

Lawrence's eyes sparkled. "You got it, Teddy. Julio'll be ecstatic."

With a curt nod, the man in the silly green suit and stupid beige scarf disappeared into the evening. Teddy turned around, and drank in the sight of the gazebo before him. For the first time in weeks, he felt he could see things clearly at last.

With a wistful smirk, the man even chuckled.

"Come home soon, honey."

* * *

*knock knock-a-knock!*

Several pairs of feet waited impatiently at the tired wooden frame, and one stifled giggle. There was the gentle squeak of springs from inside as a weight left the tiny bed and pitter pattered their way over to the door.

"Nng!" There was a jump and a scrabble, and the door handle rattled. Another jump had it grasped, and twisted open with an effort.

"Hello?" Little Ty poked his head out of the crack in the door. "Can I helphelp?"

"Good ahh... morning senor!" Camila knelt down to address him. "We ahh... talk, to Alex?"

"Mama sleeping," Ty pointed behind him. The lad span around, and took in a breath. "HEY M-"

"No no, no no senor, ssshhhh...!" Camila shushed him. "Is mission secret, okay?"

"...seekamishun?" Ty's eyes widened. After a moment's pondering, they glassed over, and the boy mumbled. "...don't like seekamishun. Scary."

"W-what about a special mission?" Grant interjected, before Ty could withdraw.

"Speshamishun..." the boy looked to one side. And brightened up instantly.

"Okay!"

The door swung open fully, and Ty stepped to the side, letting the small group through.

"Right, everything ready?"

"I-I think so, senor."

"Flowers, check, candles, check, something that looks like a present...?"

Someone cleared their throat.

"Ch-check. Fire type to light the candles?"

"No fire type. Also dangerous."

"Ah, trues. What about normal fire."

"Si senor."

A lighter of all things was ignited, illuminating the small army of candles on top.

"Alright, just like we practiced... Jesus this bloody thing's hot," Grant huffed. "On three, right? One, Two, Th-"

"FELIZ CUMPLEANOS-"

"-ANOS-"

"-lepszego!"

"...ugh," Grant couldn't help but grin as the plan failed spectacularly. "We said on three, guys...! And that wasn't even in Spanish Shem!"

"I not know Spanish," the Pole deadpanned back at him.

"Well nor do I but I tried!" Grant deflated.

"You try too much." Agent frowned at him. "Why not just happy birthday like normal?"

"Because most of the people here speak Spanish!"

"But speak English too."

"I-I guess..."

"And Alex not speak Spanish."

The urge to just bury his head in the cake was overwhelming now. This plan was falling apart faster than the confectionary he'd muddled together. Some gentle, cleansing fire to put him out of his misery...

But then his memory was spurned by the reason he was doing all of this in the first place.

"Nng..." Alex groaned, rising out of her bed and rubbing at tired eyes. "Ty...? Ty, where are ya swee-"

Like she'd just been caught on camera, realisation kicked in, and her eyes bolted wide. Instinctively she clutched her bedcover around herself.

"...what're y'all doin' in here?"

And she was met with awkward silence.

"You... no hear, Senora?" Camila stammered.

"I heard... somethin'," Alex stretched. "But it weren't like any language I know."

The small crowd exchanged more awkward looks.

"…Okay yeah, maybe it wasn't the best idea." Grant sighed.

"Might as well say in Rus-ish," Shemmy didn't miss a beat. "Is just as bad idea."

""e're getting sidetracked here!" Grant flailed. With a slight bounce to his step, he reanimated himself, "H-Happy Birthday Alex. Sorry it started off so... weird."

"Birthday? M-mine?" Her voice quivered. "How... how'd y'all know?!"

"Birthday mama?!" Ty suddenly gasped, and without warning dashed off into another room.

"There was a umm, notification thing?" Grant gestured upwards. Alex followed his gaze, and noticed a small, flashing exclamation point just hovering there in the air.

"...an' y'all can see that?" She pointed at it. Her confusion only grew when she was met with five or six shaking heads.

"Is ahh, how you say, especial for each person, Senora," Camila explained with a sunny smile. "Oh, a-and speak of especial... here! For you!"

Suddenly the exuberant teen thrust a bouquet of hand-picked, bright purple flowers at her. "Ha-happy birthday!"

The gasp swelled within Alex like a balloon. "F-for me?"

One whiff of the bizarre flowers, and suddenly her tiredness melted away. They had a scent she couldn't quite identify, like some kinda spicy, fruity... wood?

Despite everything, the tears prickled. How did she know to pick purple ones…?

"Happybirfay, mama!" Her boy Ty rushed back into the room, holding onto a thing wrapped in kitchen roll.

"Alright that's it, I'm putting this bloody cake down," Grant chunked the cake down onto the bedside table. "Felt like I was about to burn up there."

"You from Australia. Should be used to burning." Shemmy clicked his tongue.

"Hush you," the Aussie gave him a playful shove. "Oh, and are you gonna give her your present already?"

Shemmy looked visibly pained at this 'news', and blushed the shade past crimson. Eyes darting furiously, everywhere except in front of him, he thrust a hand into his hoodie pocket and retrieved a delicately wrapped roundish something or other. Complete with a little bow and everything.

"Wh-what's this, Cookie?" Alex puzzled over it all. The wrapping was almost too pretty to remove. But as Shemmy continued to withdraw into himself over it all, looking away from literally everything... somehow, she decided that _maybe_ it was better to open this one first.

Shemmy peered out from behind the crook of his elbow as the bow gently sprung undone. The shiny blue wrapping was peeled away to reveal a

"Little... wooden man?" Her frown was quickly forced upwards. About four inches tall and carved with intricate detail, how could she scorn something that had been made with this much love?

"Is... lucky spirit," Shemmy's voice cracked. "Will keep your house safe."

"O-oh, like a gnome?" There was a sharp intake of volume as Alex's confusion dissolved away. "Aww, I can see it now! Thank ya Shemmy, that's real kinda-"

"Mama, open mine now."

"...Alright sweetie, one moment."

Ty stamped his feet repeatedly as his mother fumbled with the ball of paper he'd thrown at her. The wrapping fell away instantly, and left in her hand was an egg-sized, purplish black rock.

"Happybirfay!" Ty threw his arms into the air, obviously very proud with his creativity.

"Ohhh, thank ya honey…" Alex held back a little chuckle, and plopped the rock back down on her bed. "It's a real pretty stone, ain't it?"

Ty launched himself back onto the bed next to Alex, who took another moment to look around at everything.

"I… I didn't even know," she mumbled. "S-so y'all can tell when it's someone's birthday now? How long has that been a thing?"

"No clue." Grant shrugged. "This is the first time I've seen it. But we've been here for… a while now, maybe a month? A-and this is the first one we've been told about, which is pretty unlikely considering how many of us there are here. So either something's changed recently, or-"

Suddenly, a flash of light interrupted Grant mid-sentence.

"Yesss!"

There was a clamouring and a moment's panic as the half a dozen youths turned around to find Priya standing on the opposite end of the room, her fists clenched in victory.

"…huh?" Grant frowned. "Priya? W-weren't you-"

"Everyone!" A rare burst of confidence from her. "I have something amazing to show you!"


	17. Seeing the Light

It was really unusual to see Priya in this state, Grant reasoned. Most of the time, he had trouble even keeping track of her, but now she seemed determined to get the full attention of everyone in the room. Generally when she'd tried that out in the past, things had gone horribly, and yet she kept persisting…?

"Y-you really have to see it! It is amazing!" Still she insisted, using her whole bodyweight in a vain attempt to drag Grant out of the room.

"Wouldn't it be easier to tell us what's so amazing?" Grant grimaced back at her. All of this effort from her was barely even tugging at his arm, forget actually moving him. "What could've happened in the… three minutes since we all walked in here to give Alex her birthday stuff?"

Suddenly the tiny tugging at his arm dissipated, followed by a flash of light and a crescendo of gasps. Grant felt a bubble of confusion rise and burst within him as he turned his hand around, only to not find a tiny Indian girl flailing on the end of it.

"You would… be... surprised!" The same voice appeared on his other side, and began trying to push him out of the room instead.

"Should I just… follow you? Would that be easier?" Grant really didn't want to let her spirits down, but this all seemed like a big waste of energy.

Priya stopped shoving at him and slumped against his arm, heaving. "Y-yes please…"

With another mighty inhale, she adjusted her overlarge glasses, and shuffled towards the door. "Do you… still… have… that pink orb you… found?"

"Pink orb?" Grant mused, "Yeah, it's at my place. Why d'you ask?"

"Go and get it please! I need to show you something important with it!" Priya practically exploded.

Another wave of confusion rippled through Grant. Why was the weird orb of all things so important?  
"…s-sure, all good, just gimme a sec," He nodded to her. "Sorry Alex, looks like I gotta go do a thing? Hope the cake's not shit!"

"Don't worry about it hun, I'm sure it's lovely!" Alex called after him. "You go help the poor girl!"

"Will do! Laters!" Grant gave a small gesture that looked lost between a wave and a salute, then jogged off out of Alex's house and towards his own. He stumbled over the weird raised bit between the sitting room and the bedroom, and wrenched the drawer of the little bedside table thing open, shuffling his meagre few winnings out of the way and retrieving the glowing pink orb from its depths.

The bloody thing was still as heavy as ever, Grant noted with a groan as he plodded back towards his front door, where Priya was bouncing on her toes outside.

"You're back!" She beamed at him as he closed his door. "Do you… do you have the orb?"

"I… yes?" Grant lifted the thing up with both hands and presented it to her. "Did you need to hold it or something? Careful, it's really heavy."

"No no, there is no need for that," Priya grabbed onto his arm. "I just need you to stay really close to me, o-okay?"

"Really close? Like… just stay here?"

"H-hold onto me please."

"You're… already doing that?"

"I know. I am just… nervous. I have never done this with two people before, so it could go wrong."

"Go wrong? Like… badly?"

"I hope not!" Priya tittered out a nervy giggle. "It's just… Natu is really small, and we're so big, a-and… and… and yeah."

"…no pressure then!" Grant hoped his grin wasn't too cheesy. While Priya did say it would all be fine, there was the question of what she was even going to do in the first place, and her irrepressible habit of making the people around her more nervous instead of less.

The constant quivering, the awkward laughter, the way she always looked like she was about to burst into tears… it made a man wary.

But on the other hand, she'd asked for his help. And he'd be damned if he was about to refuse that. Plus the weird pink orb had something to do with it too, so it must've been important.

"A-alright…" Priya took in a deep breath. She rubbed her forehead, and spoke up to her Natu, who had made a veritable nest in her long dark hair, it seemed. "N-Natu? T…"  
Her voice failed her. With a quick cough, she cleared her throat and tried again. "T…Teleport, please!"  
"Tuuu!" The tiny Natu chirped, and began glowing a soft, bluish colour. Suddenly Grant felt some almighty force shove him about the small of his back, and the only thing he could register was Priya, still desperately hooked onto his arm.

His stomach seemed to have left him behind, and the entire chorus of pins and needles ricocheted through his body. After a lengthy experience that felt like he was being stretched outwards, and then compressed back together, both somehow at the same time, the entire gauntlet of sensations stopped all at once, and gravity returned with the thud of his arse hitting soft, grainy ground.

"Bloody hell…" He stammered, and staggered back to his feet. For the first time since arriving in this weird world, he didn't feel cold. Massaging his ears to shake off the sudden ringing feeling that had sprung up since whatever the hell had just happened, it took him a moment to realise that the reason he wasn't cold any more was because he wasn't in the town any more.

Or anywhere near it. Intimidating dunes of blindingly white sand vaulted far above, while the sun leered down with its blistering glare, and the occasional grumpy looking cactus… skulked.

Definitely not their village.

"Oh, no…" Priya sighed, reminding Grant that she was there in the first place. "I-I thought this might happen."

"Something went wrong?" Grant forced the most earnest looking smile he could. "Well, we didn't get torn in half or anything? There's that at least?"

"I-I don't think that would happen." Priya shook her head fervently. "Okay Natu, try again please. Remember that place with all the tall buildings, a-and the people?"

"Wait, people?" Said Grant. "You mean there's m-"

Suddenly space and time were torn away from him again, as another prickly bout of teleporting had the two of them reappear somewhere much darker. The blinding sand and face-melting heat were replaced with obstinately tall granite towers.

The paths were a dull concrete, the roads a dark tarmac, the sky a dull, cloudy soup. A pretty depressing place, if he were brutally honest.

"This the place?" Grant massaged his ears again.

"…M-maybe," Priya gulped. "This city looks very… samey. Do all big cities look like this?"

"Nah, not at all," Grant looked around and grimaced at all the grey. "Brizzy's nothing like this. I'd say this is more like New York or something?"

"O-oh, you have been there?"

"Nah, just seen it in the movies and stuff."

"Of-of course." Priya gave him a polite smile. "Well I suppose we should look around?"

"Yeah, definitely. Lot better than just standing here."

It was a few steps before Grant was missing the heat of the desert. All of the towering skyscrapers, combined with the thick stratus-y clouds, made for very little sun penetration and even less heat.

The pair of them were shivering before long, making tentative steps towards the nearest empty crossroads. In every direction, the same depressing pattern of office blocks taunted them.

If big cities like New York were a concrete jungle, he and Priya were definitely lost in this granite labyrinth. Even the shifty looking Pokémon were unfamiliar and… pointy, with some poisonous looking lizard-like thing swaggering its way down the opposite street, a two-footed rocky creature hiding away under the eaves of a building, and… did they seriously make a rubbish bag into a Pokémon?

Either way, it glared at the both of them as they shivered past, foul looking waste literally dripping from it. He could at least recognise the Sableye as it disappeared into a dark corner between two buildings, fading away into just a glittering pair of eyes. What little relief he could salvage quickly dissolved away as the Sableye's eyes glinted red, and a mouth full of razor sharp teeth smiled hungrily at them. Keeping eye contact was probably a bad idea, so Grant desperately glanced anywhere else. His gaze caught on a large sign a couple of streets down, standing over what looked like a park as if it were a gatekeeper. Despite the distance, he was able to make out that the original name of 'City A' had been scratched out, and scrappily replaced with 'Sunstop City'. Definitely an improvement.

Less comforting was the fact that population was originally stated as two hundred and fifty something. It had since been changed several times, down to two hundred and thirteen.

"Well, there's a name at least. A-any clue yet?" Grant folded his arms for warmth. "Because honestly, this place kinda scares me. Like, what the hell is that thing, and why does it look like it wants to stab us?"

"That? That is a Pawniard," Priya answered. "You… you didn't know?"

"I-I dunno much about the newer games," Grant rubbed at his arms vigorously. "Like, the last game I actually played was Leaf…green? I learned a bit about the ones after that, but never got a chance to play any."

"Oh? Did you outgrow them?"

"That's... one way to put it." Grant grasped at the locket around his neck. "I guess you could say my uh, priorities were changed."

As his chest tightened, he could feel a gentle squeeze on his arm. He caught Priya's gaze, who returned a surprisingly sunny smile.

"I... I think I know how you feel," her lips were thin. "My grandmother p...passed away about six months ago, and I still-"

Suddenly a loud, shrill noise shook Priya out of her reminising. Springing to attention like a startled meerkat, she darted around looking for the source of it.

"Who is there?!" Her voice came out as more of a squeak than anything. Instinctively, Grant reached for the pokeball in his hoodie pocket. Whatever the situation was, big Harry would... probably be able to sort things out. He had to laugh though; why was it already an instinct to grab a pokeball? Had he become this institutionalised already?

His grip tightened around the pokeball. No matter what, he couldn't lose that.

There was another shrill whistle in the distance, and a pair of heavy shoes came clapping towards them down a nearby street.

"Are you Priya?!" A thick accent called after them both, and again Priya snapped to attention like she'd been stung. "M-Mavis said to look for you!"

"Mavis?!" Priya squeaked again, and a chubby young man tumbled down the street towards them. Immediately clutching at his knees and gasping for breath, he swept a curtain of brownish curls from his face. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but immediately his efforts dissolved into more gasping for breath.

"S-sorry!" He spluttered. Eventually, he straightened up, and placed hands on his hips.

"R-right...!" The young man gulped down more precious air. "I am, werry sorry about all zis. My name is Franz, and I am from Hamburg in Germany. A-and you?"

"G-Grant, Australia," Grant shook the boy's hand. "Are... are you the one I'm supposed to m-"

"You are ze one with ze orb?" Franz interrupted.

"... y-yeah."

"Sank you," the boy smiled. Suddenly he released a pokeball, and called, "Flutter, Lichten!"

Out of the capsule burst some kind of butterfly... thing. It looked vaguely familiar, but it was either too dark or too obscure for him to be sure.

Yeah, it was too dark. That was it.

The creepy looking butterfly released a sudden flash of light into the sky, which illuminated literally everything for all of a few seconds, and came with the consequence of blinding Grant and Priya.

"Sorry, I should have warned you to cover your eyes!" Franz smiled sheepishly.

"Bit late for that," Grant rubbed at his eyes, only to have to squint as another flash of light exploded a few blocks down.

"Mavis is there! Follow me!" Franz was suddenly all self important, leading the way with a swagger in his step, and the pair were given no real option but to follow after him.

"We may have to battle Pokemons soon," Franz said. "The ones zat live here like ze dark, so zey might attack us if we make lots of light."

"You mean if you make lots of light?" Grant frowned.

"Aha, yes," Franz didn't give him the dignity of eye contact. "But is necessary, because zis is a big city. You can easily get lost and killed in here. We have lost so many already..."

"...I guess?" Grant let big Harry out of its pokeball. "I can't take on ghosts though, got it?"

And as if to spite him, from out of nowhere swooped a Misdreavus. With its signature impish cackle, the little ghost expelled a high pitched shout, which knocked Harry back a few feet before it could so much as react. Harry cringed from Misdreavus' efforts, and Franz's weird butterfly thing took command, loosing a stream of bubbles at the Missreavus.

"Bubbles?" Grant frowned. But there was no time to be confused. "...bugger it! Harry, Arm Thrust at eight o'clock!"

"Yah!" Harry recovered from its flinching ordeal, and span around, launching its giant palm into one of those metal things Priya mentioned earlier. Pawniard...?

Either way, one hit was all it took to send the thing into a nearby building, and then explode into blue sparkles. Maybe Harry was just overlevelled, Grant reasoned.

But then another one of them leapt from the shadows, and sunk its two claws into Harry's back. It groaned in pain, and span around to try and dislodge the attacker, but they were in too deep and staying put.

"Oh no!" Priya gasped. "Grant! What can I do?"

"How should I know?!" Grant realised far too late how harsh his voice was, "...s-sorry."

Priya and her Natu had been standing there like lemons for the longest time. Understandable, Grant shrugged, because a Natu wasn't going to help much against all these Ghosts and stuff. But still she made an honest effort, with her little Natu zipping about and launching sharp Peck attacks at anything it could hit. The Pawniard lodged in Harry's back seemed especially irritated by the tiny bird, because it couldn't counter attack. Natu's attacks weren't doing anything to dislodge it either, and nor was the weird green wind that Franz's moth thing just blew at it, so Harry hatched himself an idea.

"Y-Yama!" It grunted, before literally toppling over backwards.

"Harry?!" Grant gave out a betraying squeak, but it all seemed a bit unnecessary when he result of Harry falling over was merely a pained screech, followed by a wave of blue sparkles pouring out from under it.

Yet still more came, and it only seemed like the numbers were growing faster than they could be defeated.

"Ugh... we're gonna need reinforcements or something," Grant pinched his nose. "Priya, m-maybe teleport back and grab some help-"

"T-that is too risky, Grant!" Priya countered, as her Natu surprised some purple cat thing by attacking it with some kind of shadow. "If three of us are struggling, then just two of you will only struggle more! And what if I can't get back here?! Natu's teleport is not reliable!"

"W-well we've gotta do something!" Grant cried, as Harry literally punched a Koffing - finally, something recognisable - and launched it over the horizon, where it spewed out a trail of thick green gases on its way past.

"We will just have to fight them all off!" Priya shouted back. "Okay Natu, it is time to-"

But she shrieked, and clapped two hands over her mouth, as her little Natu was suddenly ensnared by the shadowy grip of a Sableye.

"T-tu!" It squawked, writhing in pain as it was slowly dragged towards the darkness, and Sableye's grin widened.

"Ohh shit," Grant gulped. "That's our way home! Franz, can't you help us out m-"

Franz's moth thing was occupied with a Haunter however, which was doing a spirited job to evade the steady stream of bubbles. Harry was beyond useless too, buried under an army of those Pawniard things.

"Can't it teleport out?!" Dull hope was about all he had.

"I-I have tried!" Priya sobbed. Tears were bubbling in her eyes as the little Natu struggled, and Sableye's Cheshire Cat grin glowed red. A gaping maw full of glittering, sharp teeth opened wide, and its eyes sparkled.

"Now, Cori!"

There was the shrill cry of what sounded like another bird, and an impossibly bright spiral of fire encircled them all. Dancing around the battlefield yet not harming Grant or the others, it nevertheless succeeded in scaring off the multitude of Pokemon, and freeing Natu from the Sableye's grasp!

The flame span around like a catherine wheel before extinguishing itself almost instantly, leaving serenity and an empty street in its wake.

"Ugh, that's the third ambush today!" The same voice spoke again. "Weren't you guys lucky I was nearby?!"

Grant followed the voice to identify an ordinary looking middle aged woman. With her arms folded across her chest and satisfied smirk, he could've mistaken her confidence for that of a young kid who knew these dumb games inside out. A smallish red bird Pokemon stood beside her, tapping its feet and shaking its outstretched wings.

"I knew you would come for us!" The quiver in Franz's voice disagreed with him, while Priya looked elated.

"Mavis!" She gushed. "You came just in time! Poor Natu was almost eaten by a Sableye, a-and-"

"Aw, it's okay PriPri," this Mavis held her close, like they'd known each other for years. "And you must be Grant?" She held out a strong hand, "Mavis Buckley, from Baltimore in the US of A. What's yer story?"

"Well uhh," Grant rubbed at the back of his head. "Brisbane, Australia, got a little sister back home. P-Priya said you wanted to see me about an orb or something?"

"Sure do!" Mavis beamed at him. "But not me personally. It's Abi who needs to see you about that. She should be here soon. Wanna signal her again, Fray?"

"Sure 'sing," Franz nodded next to her. "And call me Franz please."

With another quick instruction, Franz's moth fluttered up higher into the sky, and Grant had enough sense to cover his eyes this time, before it unleashed another blinding flash of light. The roads, buildings and even skies all lit up for just a moment, and the group only had to wait a few seconds before there was another flash in response, just a couple of streets down.

"There's our girl...!" Mavis clapped her hands together. "So, you two got a bit lost in here?"

"Eheh, just a bit," Grant glanced away. "The village we're in is so small, with like twenny people. Here you've got over two hundred?"

"Y-yup," Mavis' voice suddenly hardened. "I'd trade with ya any day. We've already lost forty... three here?"

"Forty four," Franz corrected her. "Callum, two days ago."

"Forty four..." Grant could feel his head swimming from it all. "Bloody hell Priya, that's like everyone in our village, twice."

"I-I don't want to think about that," Priya stammered. Her Natu has returned to her now that it had finished preening, and squashed itself back into her hair.

"Sorry I'm late!" An even heavier accent than Franz's could be heard along with the clapping of shoes down the path. The small congregation turned just in time to see a skinny young thing approaching them.

Not even out of breath after having run two blocks, she stood up straight and addressed them all.

"Hello there," her voice was deep and rich, "my name is Abebi, Abi for short. I am from Namibia. And you?"

"G-Grant, Australia," Grant accepted a warm handshake. "I uhh... can't say I know much about Namibia, sorry. O-oh wait, yeah I do! You guys have a rugby team doncha? The err... well wishers?"

"Welwitschias," she flashed a blindingly white set of teeth. "But close enough eh? That's more than I'd expect you to know, chommie."

"A-nyway..." Mavis pushed the conversation along. "Let's all remember why we're here huh?"

"Alright mum," Abi smirked, and swung a Sentret patterned rucksack about her shoulders. "Little Priya has told me that you have an orb just like this?"

Into the bag she dove, and retrieved a huge, dark mass of something. Even compared to the darkness of the city around them, the orb she'd grabbed was of an immense swirling darkness that it was almost black.

"If you look inside, there is clouds?" Abi explained. "I had to battle a shrouded man for this, and he had a Mega Gyarados! But they were no match for my Lief."

She gestured to the four foot tall green thing next to her, and Grant got the nickname immediately. He would've said it was made of flower petals rather than leaves, but... close enough, right?

"That's... a lot like how I got my one," Grant retrieved his pink orb from his hoodie pocket. "Fell down a mountain with Big Harry, had to fight a bloke with an Aggron, got this as a reward. You can also see clouds in it, and a crescent moon...?"

"Moon? Hmm." Abi pursed her lips. "That is strange. I thought something might happen if we brought them together, but nothing seems to be.. happening."

Nothing was said for a while. Even the wind that blew past seemed confused, swirling about without direction.

"W-well maybe they're not together... enough?" Grant shrugged. "Here, lemme get closer, and..."

With his orb in hand, Grant crept closer to Abi, who held hers close. The two orbs shook violently as they edged closer, before suddenly melting into each other, and exploding in a wall of light.


	18. A New Phase

A sudden, almost metallic noise hurtled through the evening sky as the two orbs were fused together, and there was a gasp when two separate columns of light burst vertically.

"Wh-what does that mean?" Someone mumbled.

"Maybe we have to go there now? Someone else shrugged.

"What, to both of them?"

"We split ze party?" Franz suggested. "Scout ze location and report back?"

"Easier said than done, mate," Grant stroked his chin. "Those looked like they were miles away."

-.-.-.-

Two identical columns of light had spiralled into the sky, obscuring everything in their path.

"Gee, what're those?" Aurelie shielded her eyes, a fascinated smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. She pivoted her boot against a rock and squinted, "Looks like a few miles at least. Whaddya say to an adventure, Cleo?"

A deep, crooning noise responded, and an electrified tail crackled.

"Alrighty then! That one looks closer. Let's go see!"

Aurelie hopped off from the rock, and began navigating the rocky path towards one beam of light, with Cleo hot on her trail.

.-.-.-.-.

"Huh. So it's happening." Max grimaced at the lights in the distance. "Guess we'd better go do something about that. Coming, Klang?"

With a noise lost somewhere between a whirr and a purr, the giant metallic gear sparked after its trainer.

.-.-.-.-.

"Hmm?" A sudden flash outside caught Alex's attention. "What's goin' on out there?"

"Is probably nothing," Shemmy leant down beside her, an ecstatic Ty kicking about his shoulders.

"Aw c'mon Cookie, light don't just burst into the sky like that," she gestured to the window. "Ya think Grant and Priya have somethin' to do with it?"

"Mm, maybe," Shemmy shrugged, and then winced as Ty's foot dig into his shoulder.

"Horsey, Horsey!"

"Am not horse, I am wolf." Shemmy 'growled' up at the lad. "And wolf eat loud little boys."

Ty clasped two hands over his mouth, and stifled a giggle. Meanwhile Alex shook her head fondly. Two slices of cake waited on her window sill.

-.-.-.-.-

"Hunh? What the...?"

For a moment, Caitlyn's attention was diverted. An entire forest lighting up for all of a few moments would generally qualify as a distraction, after all. Suddenly, she remembered herself. "S-sorry, what was it ye were saying?"

"You have-a..." the young man struggled with his words, "Machismo... bracc...elet...to?"

"Uh huh...?" Caitlyn frowned at him. "Why d'y'ask?"

"...again, please?" Her acquaintance lilted. "You are-a... no capisce?"

"Capisce?" A sudden siren blared in Caitlyn's mind. If there was ever a time that random knowledge of shite mafia movies was going to help her, she supposed it was now.

"U-understand?"

"Si, si!" The young man's face lit up. "You uhh... accent, is very fast. "I-I not understand good."

"A'right, a'right..." Caitlyn kneaded her forehead. She dug into her new tote bag - shaped like a cute wee Oddish - and extracted a super potion, before dropping it again and cursing to herself. Eventually a metallic, necklace-like thing was unearthed. "Y-ye want this?"

"Si si, signora!" The young lad was practically glowing in his excitement. He wrenched two hands out of his pockets, scrambled to pick up the coins he'd just dropped, and counted it all up manically, "Sette, Otto... Tre! I give-a you... tre... mille?!"

Caitlyn took a step back in shock. 'Three million?! How's a wee kid get that m-'

But then realisation kicked in, and sent her crashing back down to earth. M was a thousand in Roman numerals, wasn't it? Mille was a thousand...

She smirked at her own stupidity. Almost had herself believing she'd be a millionaire in this dumb game. But three thousand was still a lot of money. How'd this kid get even that much? It was guaranteed more than she'd get for it in a local shop... wherever the nearest one of those was.

It was a no brainer really, wasn't it?

Thankfully Caitlyn knew a language that all Italians understood. If cliches were to be believed, anyway. With the most honest looking smile she could muster, she gave the lad a thumbs up. He seemed almost too happy to hand over his hard earned money, which Caitlyn quickly counted up before giving him her Macho Brace in return. What use was she going to have for it anyway? Poor Leon could barely move with it on.

"Thank you, thank you signora!" The boy grasped at her hands and wrung them. He then gabbled something in Italian to his Pokemon - a Shieldon of all things. It made a weird noise in response, and began toddling after him. "Buon notte!"

And just like that, they were away. Caitlyn whistled to Leon, who emerged out of the undergrowth and sat at her feet.

"We should probably get goin' soon, eh Leon?"

"Rrawr?" It mewled back at her obliviously.

It was growing progressively darker in the forest - apparently some pompous wank had named it 'Bygone Grove'. With the last of the day's sunlight descending beyond the mountain peaks in the distance, Caitlyn's footfalls were growing unsteady. Of course, Leon dashing about in all its exuberance wasn't helping in the slightest.

"A'right Leon, simmer a bit, will ye?" She couldn't help but grin down at her Litleo, bounding through the forestry without so much as a second thought, "It's been a long day, okay?"

Leon continued running through the woods as darkness took a hold, leaving the little spike of flame atop its head as the sole source of light.

"C'mon, get back here, will ye?" Caitlyn gasped, picking up her pace and tailing the faint glow of light in the distance. However, next thing she knew, the little light was charging back towards her;

"Rrrowr!" Leon growled in alarm, tearing back through the narrow gaps in between the trees, and hiding behind its trainer's legs.

"W-what's wrong?" Caitlyn frowned. This wasn't like him. He was normally the kind that would charge first, and ask questions never.

She entertained the idea of kneeling down to console her Litleo, however her ears pricked up at a noise in the distance;

An odd, rattling noise.

"...Can ye light the place up a bit more, Leon?" Caitlyn asked of her Litleo, who let out a stifled mewing noise in response. The flame atop his head shivered brighter, illuminating more of the surrounding area, and in the shadows, pairs of eyes glowed back at them.

A long, forked tongue fluttered out from the depths, and the pokemon slinked out;  
one by one.

"Ohhh, dear." Caitlyn swallowed down something vile, as five of the purple, snake-like Pokémon surrounded them. This wasn't right. She'd never seen five Pokémon attacking at once - not in this world, anyway. Since when were Ekans smart enough to ambush?

Five tongues fluttered in near unison, and five tails rattled melancholically, the trainer and her one Litleo were quickly trapped, as five pairs of beady little eyes stared them down.

"Rraaa-owr!" Leon yowled, a tone of fear very audible in its voice.

"It's a'right, Leon, don't worry." Caitlyn glanced around, confirming that they were well and truly surrounded. "J-just do exactly what I tell ye, and we'll be fine. Okay?"

And before long, all she could see of the Ekans surrounding them were the glinting of their eyes; floating specks in the darkness. They weren't moving, nor were they about to let their prey escape.

"A'right, we're bustin' our way out, ye hear me Leon?" Caitlyn gave the instructions, and her terrified Litleo murmured a noise she hoped was agreement.

"That's m'boy." She managed a frail smile, "Okay, hit hard, hit fast! Set up a Fire Spin, just like we practised!"

"Mwraa!" Leon growled back a response, the flame tip on his head growing brighter still as a tongue of fire began to emerge from it. Spiralling around like a vortex, Leon launched it forwards at the first of the Ekans, trapping the creature inside!

"Kann-ssss!" It hissed in pain, white hot flames toasting its skin.

"Okay Leon! Gotta be quick! Hit another one with an Ember!" Caitlyn ordered. A bright ball of fire began to glow inside of Leon's mouth, however he had to roll out of the way to avoid another Ekans diving at him!

The purple snake shot past, thankfully leaving Leon unscathed, however it was forced to swallow the Ember, which escaped from its nostrils as smoke. Leon's cunning dodge only only brought it mere moments, as three more Ekans were still poised and ready to attack.

"We can use that, Leon! Try another Ember!" Caitlyn commanded, and once again, Leon charged up a ball of Ember. Once again, an Ekans readied a dive, and lunged towards Leon.

"A'right, NOW!" Caitlyn cried, and Leon fired, shooting a ball of Ember right into the Ekans' mouth.

Whipping Leon with its long tail as it tumbled past, burning from the inside, the Litleo was left with just two assailants.

"Okay, if ye can dodge!" Caitlyn instructed her determined pokemon, who rolled out of the way to avoid one Ekans belching out a huge pool of dissolving acid, "Right, now hit the other one with a Headbutt!"

Leaping over the pool of acid, Leon collided skulls with the fifth Ekans. The Litleo stumbled from the impact, but the Ekans was sent flying, crashing into a tree and losing consciousness.

"Ohh, you're doin' so well!" Caitlyn praised Leon, as the diving Ekans attacked from nowhere, sweeping Leon's legs from underneath with its tail.

"No! Leon!" Caitlyn gasped, as a slender, purple body coiled itself around the Litleo.

"Rraaa?!" It cried, body constricted by the Ekans.

"C'mon Leon, get out of there, you have to!" Shouted Caitlyn, "See if you can burn it!"

Its head flame increasing in brightness once again, Leon attempted to dislodge the Ekans by burning it, but the tiny candle's worth of fire just wasn't enough to rattle it. Caitlyn's hand crept to her mouth. Where was that Italian kid when you needed him? He would've been really useful right now!

Squeezed and constricted ever tighter, Leon could barely breathe. All the while, the othree surviving Ekans was bearing down on it.

"Oh no, Leon…" Caitlyn's hands were trembling. There must have been something she could do?!

And the other Ekans lunged. Teeth bared, it punctured skin…

"Kaa-aaaansss!"

Recoiling in pain, the Ekans loosened its grip on Leon. The other one had bitten it!

Writhing and flailing from the effect of the other Ekans' Bite, it hissed, baring its fangs and rattling its tail out of fury!

"Okay Leon, we've got a chance! Let's get out of here!"

"Rrrow!" Leon mewled, charging up another ball of Ember and taking careful aim.

"Aww c'mon Leon, we can go now!" Caitlyn hissed, as the two Ekans fought on the ground. She considered just picking the stubborn Litleo up and running while she could, however as an enormous ball of fire left the creature's mouth, and fried the two feuding Ekans, her hands fell down to her sides, and her poor aching heart could finally rest.

"...alright, ye did well there." She chuckled, kneeling down to comfort her brave Litleo, "Once we get back to the poke centre, I'll give ye a nice-"

"Kansss…!"

Bursting out of the flame, the charred Ekans hissed furiously. With the last of its strength, it fired out several shots of Poison Sting. Like glinting needles, they whizzed through the air at the both of them.

"Rrrowr?!"

Collapsing under the weight of its legs, Leon the Litleo had jumped in the way to protect its trainer, only to have three poison pins impaled through its skin...

"Oh, Leon!" Caitlyn gasped, cradling the Litleo in her arms. Rifling through her bag, she searched for something, anything that might be able to help.

"C'mon, c'mon, there has to be somethin'!" she cried, literally tipping the bag upside down in her urgency, "Ohh Leon, ye stupid-"

But as the tears started to form in her eyes, she realised. "...No! I'm the stupid one! I shouldn't'a come all the way out here in the first place!"

She stuffed her handful of things back in her bag, and slung it over her shoulder. After making sure Leon was as comfortable as it could be in her arms, she spun around back and forth.

"Which way do we go?!"

In every direction, all she could see was trees. Endless trees and darkness. Densely packed and heavily rooted, with only the vague glow of Leon's fur tip saving them from the plunge into complete darkness, Caitlyn was quickly realising the error of her ways. Just darkness and tripping over. She knew this before she came in. So why did as go on?!

"Mrrow…" Leon mewed in her arms, his voice heavy and dulled; there were more important things right now.

"...don't you worry, Leon! I'll get ye home!" She sniffled, holding her precious pokemon close. Everywhere looked the same, yet just standing here was definitely going to get the both of them killed. So there was only one solution.

Dashing through the foliage as fast as her stumbling feet would allow her, all Caitlyn could see was the glow of Leon's head-flame. Tears streamed from her eyes, and goosebumps prickled down her arms. How long could he last like this? She had that super potion from earlier, but that wouldn't help the problem, it would only prolong the suffering.

Tripping and stumbling more times than she could count, everything was proving her enemy in this near darkness. She could only register the blurry outline of trees, rushing past her vision at breakneck speed. All the while her mind tormented her;

Had she picked the right way?

Was she doing more harm than good, running with Leon in her arms?

Would either of them ever make it out of this forest?

A slight relief rippled at the horizon as the trees began to thin out, cresting at the surface. She could swallow her heart at last, but this brought up fresh worries like thick, acidic bile; even if she had cleared the forest, was she too late? Was the pokecentre closed already?

Her hopes grew as she could spy lights in the distance - that meant she'd at least chosen the right direction. However, as her lungs burned, and the lights grew brighter, little Leon… his light was only growing dimmer.

"C'mon Leon, you can make it…" She gasped, her breath stinging in her lungs. Tears still streaming from her eyes, she clambered towards the familiar red and white sign. Just a few metres away…

"H-hello?!" A desperate pokemon trainer crashed into the door of the pokecentre, hammering on it for all her beleaguered limbs were worth, "I...is anyone… in?!"

She continued to pummel the door, banging her sore fist against the sturdy wood, and yet…

No one was answering.

"Ohh, you have te be kiddin' me!" She cried. Staggering back to her feet outside the pokecentre, she cuddled her Litleo close, "J-just a little longer, Leon. Don't you die on me...!"

Feet screaming with every subsequent step, lungs gasping for air, she forced her body forwards into the village;

"H-has... has anyone got an Antidote?!"

The streets were barren, yet still the redhead continued to search. Someone had to be nearby!

Her joints were beginning to fail on her, she was that tired, but she couldn't just give up! Not with Leon in this state!

But the streets were still empty. Not a soul to be found. Not even a stupid berry tree.

"I'm so… stupid!" She gasped, plodding back towards the pokecentre. She fell to her muddy knees outside the wooden door, and shuffled up against the wall with Leon to her chest. His head flame was scarcely more than a wisp now, and the Litleo was having as much trouble breathing as his trainer, coming in strained bursts, often followed by hacking and wheezing.

"Ohh, stay with me Leon!" She begged the little creature in her arms. The village was silent, with its inhabitants obviously having gone to bed already. But a petrified teenager shivered against the wall of the pokecentre. A super potion hung limp in her hand, and her eyelids hung heavy. But she daren't fall asleep. Who knew what would happen if she let herself. While being spirited off by a Ghost-type pokemon was a very real possibility, that was the least of her worries. A tiny heartbeat was ticking away in her arms, and because of her, that six hour wait might never be over.

She trembled, and gave Leon another gentle skoosh of super potion. Then shook it to make sure it wasn't empty already. This stuff had to last all night, dammit.

Caitlyn glanced at her watch, its friendly blue glow somehow mocking her in this darkness. She stared at it intently, until the next minute ticked over. Just forty five more to go. And then five hours more after that.

Shivering once again, she whispered,

"Stay with me, Leon."

-.-.-.-.-

Author's note:

I'm finally able to start feeding in sections that I'd written months ago. So if the writing style does feel a bit weird or change, that's why lol.

With this addition, the main plot is finally moving. Grant and Abi fusing their orbs have unlocked a lot of things, including horde battles, ambushes, and most importantly, legendaries.

Stay tuned for next chapter, where we'll pick up with Caitlyn for a bit before returning to the main plot thing. Over and out :)


	19. Darkness and Light

There was a weight in her arms.

Caitlyn's senses slowly came around as the morning sun crested over the horizon, and through the pain of her stiff neck and joints, she could breathe a sigh of relief. That weight against her chest took so much off of her heart. And she even dared smile.

Spirits already lifted, Caitlyn blinked several times, and cracked her neck. She made a mental note to not fall asleep against solid wood again. That stuff was not comfy.

Leon was curled up in a ball against her, his fur all greying and tousled. The flame on his head had been reduced to a mere wisp of smoke overnight. Her bottle of super potion was lying on its side next to the pair of them.

Amongst the healthy hues of yellow, orange, green and brown, her grey Litleo remained still.

"R-right," her voice was harsh. "The centre should be opening soon. Let's get you h-"

She lifted her arms, and there was a sudden, sharp noise, like the shattering of glass. It happened in barely a second. What was once the dizzy buoyancy of relief immediately crashed back down to earth, and settled in her stomach like sickly acid.

Tears bubbled in her bulging eyes, as what was left of her Leon sparkled away from her, little shining stars spirited off into the dawn.

That was a life. She was holding life in her arms. And then it was gone.

Caitlyn looked down at her shaking arms. There were scuff marks from last night, and pressure marks from where Leon had laid against them for the past six hours or so. Little indentations from his fur...

A doorbell tinkled somewhere nearby, followed by the creaking of a wooden door. Shoes clapped against the pavement outside.

"...oh, good morning!" The man spoke. "You're up early. Did you need your Pokémon healed?"

Caitlyn was still looking down at her arms. With wide eyes, she craned her neck up to meet his sickeningly friendly gaze. He even offered a hand to help her up.

"...not any more," she barked. We vision was blurry as she forced her joints into cooperating, and pushed off from the ground. She stumbled a few steps forward, and looked around, before sprinting off as fast as her skinny legs could carry her.

"We hope to see you again!" The poke centre nurse smiled.

.-.-.-.-.-.

"...right," Grant yawned into a mug of black coffee. "God, this stuff is horey as!"

"Sorry honey," Alex held back a laugh opposite him. "I couldn't add any cream! I don' have any!"

"I'll never understand why you guys add cream to coffee. What's wrong with plain old milk?" He squinted up at her. "A-anyway! Not why I'm here!"

He took another draught of coffee. Like a slap to the face, it had him awake immediately. "R-right. Basically, some important news! I got up early especially for it, and-"

"11 in morning is early?" Shemmy scoffed.

"Morning is early for an Aussie, mate." Grant smirked back at him. "B-but yeah. You guys saw those weird lights last night, right?"

He paused for some indication from the small group he'd gathered at the 'meeting place'. There were several vacant stares, but a couple of them nodded. That was something.

"Yeah, those lights," Grant continued. "Turns our that weird orb I found was a clue to unlocking some weird new shit, and that's what made the lights? A-anyway, Priya and I teleported up to this other city. It's bloody huge, like... a metropolis sorta huge. The battles are heaps tougher there too. Priya and I woulda been screwed if some fat German guy hadn't come saved us. There was a middle-aged mum type Shiela too, and this African girl, a-and... ugh, mornings make me so distracted!"

Grant rubbed his eyes. "A-anyway, they're sending out scouting parties to go check out whatever those lights mean... apparently. They've got more than enough people, but I think that's where we wanna go if we're gonna figure out how to beat this place. So basically what I'm asking is, anyone coming with? Priya and I are heading up later because her little Natu needs a rest but uhh... yeah. That's all I got."

He never was one for speeches. It was probably another thing that stopped him captaining his guys at the rugby field. But the adoring crowds seemed especially unenthusiastic this morning, with only Alex making any earnest effort to look interested. Shemmy seemed just as determined to do the complete opposite, and the rest were about as alert as a morgue.

Grant groaned, and drained his coffee. "...ugh. That's gonna take some getting used to. A-anyway! Til Priya's ready, we should probably just carry on with our training or something. Hey Shem? Where's that Russian guy? I just remembered I still owe him money don't I?"

"Careful, he maybe charge interest." Shemmy deadpanned. "He probably training. Want help to find him?"

Grant's eyes bulged. Shemmy, offering help? Alex was working miracles on him.

"Err, sure, if you want? I mean, you can actually talk to him so..."

Without another word, Shemmy gave Alex a curt nod, and distanced himself from the group. Grant frowned; no beating about the bush then.

"Umm, yeah. So we're waiting on Priya. Til then, train as normal I guess?"

He gave the small gathering an awkward smile, and then jogged after Shemmy, who was already halfway across the field.

"So what was his name again? Ivan?"

"Ee-van." Shemmy corrected. "Eye-van is terrible western pronounce."

"Yeah yeah, fair enough," Grant rolled his eyes. "C'mon, I remembered what it was at least!"

"Congratulations. You remember simple name."

"I... I guess."

The pair trekked across maybe a kilometre or two of grasslands, eventually stumbling across the young man. Practically unchanged from the last time Grant had seen him, sitting alone with his Tyrogue in the centre of the field, Grant had to ask himself how this counted as training at all.

"...yup, that's definitely him." Grant nodded. "Thanks Shem, you saved me a lotta time. What do I owe ya?"

"Owe?" Shemmy seemed genuinely confused.

"Y-yeah, you know, money? For helping?"

"Oh..." He was now surprisingly withdrawn about it all. "...don't worry about money. Is... is favour."

Grant felt as though his eyes were about to burst from their sockets. What had Alex done to him?

"...sweet as then! What about the translating?"

"Translate?"

"Yeah, cause I don't speak Russian remember?"

"Everyone speak money language."

"Uh, alrighty."

Grant gulped down sudden nerves. He knew almost nothing about this Ivan guy, except that he carved stuff out of wood. His notice board wasn't bringing much in right now, but it was an investment, and once it gained traction it was going to be a huge help... probably.

Grant crunched across the gravelly ground, and sat opposite Ivan, who - along with his Tyrogue - barely stirred at his disturbance.

"Umm... h-hey there Ee-van." He made sure to pronounce it properly. "I'm here to give-"

"Bud' potishe." Ivan suddenly interrupted. Grant just looked to Shemmy for support.

"He telling you to shut up."

A grimace tugged at Grant's lips. That was kinda rude. But then again, a second thought told him that maybe it wasn't Ivan being rude, but Shemmy.

"Minutu." Ivan raised one finger. That sounded a lot more polite.

"He say you have stupid hair."

"Pff, least I have hair, Shem." The Aussie was quick to quip back.

Shemmy narrowed his eyes, but nonetheless smirked. He opened his mouth to respond, but a sudden blast of light interrupted the both of them.

This one didn't erupt into the sky however. Instead, it was the little Tyrogue that was enveloped, slowly changing form. Its limbs, particularly its legs, extended massively, while its body took on a much squarer shape.

"Lee!" It grunted, and flexed its newfound muscle.

"What the?" Grant frowned. "Did it just evolve from meditating all this time?"

"Not need fight to gain experience," Shemmy mused. "Is interesting."

Ivan stood up - it was the first time in a while Grant had even seen him standing- and reached out to shake Grant's hand.

"S-spasibo."

"I'm... gonna guess that means thank you?" Grant glanced back to Shemmy. He just gave a brusque nod in response.

"No worries, mate," Grant grilled the hand tighter. "Let's get you that money, eh?"

Ivan just looked a bit confused as Grant counted out an amount and showed it to him. He hoped the clueless look on his face would come across as a question. It relied broke out when Ivan gave a thumbs up in return, and received the coin from him.

Grant returned back to the village on his own, with Shemmy apparently wanting some time alone to 'think'. It seemed he took way too long however.

"Where'd you run off to?" Alex had her arms folded.

"Uhh... that way?" Grant pointed behind him. "Had to go pay that Russian guy money, and Shem knew where he was, and... how long have you been standing there?"

"Too long," Alex poked out her tongue. "Priya's been ready for about an hour! But ya weren't here when she needed ya!"

"So you've just been waiting here?" Grant could feel himself clam up. "You didn't need to do that... coulda just gone on without me you know?"

"Aw c'mon, y'all started all this," Alex shook her head at him. "It'd be kinda nasty to leave ya behind!"

"Heh, I guess I can't exactly fire the beacons to get your attention eh?" Grant chuckled perhaps a bit more than he should've. "Wh-where is Priya right now?"

"I'm right here!"

The tiny voice squeaked from behind his left shoulder. Grant span around and found her smiling up at him. She'd found herself a bright blue jersey thing with some otter-like Pokémon on it, and had teased her long hair back into pigtails. As if she didn't look young enough already.

"... so you are!" Grant hoped his voice didn't sound too nervous. "So uhh... we ready? Anyone else going?"

"I-I don't know if Natu can take more than two people at a time," Priya mumbled, and as she spoke, her little Natu burst out of the pocket on her chest. "Toot!"

"So I might make lots of trips."

"Better safe than sorry eh? Don't want teleport people all over the place like we're in a bad sci-fi movie or something." Grant nodded.

Priya just nodded fervently, her giant glasses rattling as she did so. She hooked her arm around his, and signalled her Natu.

"Teleport, please."

"Tu!" Natu beeped, and that weird, ethereal sort of feeling enveloped Grant again as their surroundings literally melted away. Like they were seeing it through a kaleidoscope, the tall buildings of Sunstop City floated in.

And with a pop, they were there.

"...ugh. That's gonna take some getting used to," Grant massaged his forehead. "How long'd it take you?"

"Take me to what?"

"To get used to the teleporting thing."

"I-I have only just started doing it too."

"...ah. So you're still getting the headaches?"

Priya nodded. "They are wearing off faster now."

"Bit of a relief." Grant shrugged. "So you're bringing the others?"

"If they want to go, y-yes."

"Alright, sweet as. I'll let the others know."

Priya gave Grant another warm smile, and next thing he knew, she had disappeared. Suddenly he was alone again.

"...better go do the thing then," he said to no one.

After promptly getting lost in the enormous labyrinth of Sunstop City, Grant eventually found a familiar face in Mavis.

"G'day!" He called upon noticing her. "Was getting worried for a second! How's it?"

"Hmm?" The older lady span around, "O-oh, it's... you! How are you?!"

"Sure is." Grant said. "So uhh... Priya said she'll be bringin' others, but one at a time 'cause she's not sure if her little Natu can handle more than two at once?"

"Makes sense," Mavis replied. "So just you, just stick around here or something 'til they're here."

Grant shrugged. "Sweet."

Mavis folded her arms, and her weird fire bird thing visibly gave Grant the huff as the pair returned their collective gaze to some unspecified point in the distance.

Grant just shifted awkwardly, and found a bench thing to take a seat on. This Mavis lady seemed entirely unimpressed by his presence. Was it something he'd said? Something he hadn't said? Whatever it was, even he was picking up some serious vibes from her.

Maybe she just didn't know him yet, he reasoned. She was blindly trusting strangers, after all. He could only imagine how bad things would get when Priya dragged the rest of them here. If one stranger was bad, a dozen or so was going to be chaos for the poor Shiela.

An odd feeling gnawed in his stomach. It might've just been hunger, as he hadn't yet eaten today, but something told him that maybe he should try and bridge that gap before things got worse. His first impression had clearly not gone well, after all, and it an unpleasant sensation, having someone actively dislike him. He was nice enough, right?

His joints creaked with disdain as his weight left the bench.

"So umm..." he made an attempt. "Looks like we're gonna be here for a while eh?"

"Looks like." Mavis didn't meet his gaze. She folded her arms tighter still, and seemed determined to search for something on the horizon.

"...eheh," it looked like he was going to have to try harder. "S-so yeah, you got family waiting for you back home? I've got a little sis."

Mavis visibly sighed, and bothered to catch his eye this time. "Wife and two kids, girl and a boy."

"W-" Grant swallowed that one down just in time. "W-wow, that's awesome. And you got sent here instead of your kid?"

"Uh huh. So us old folk can't be interested in these kiddy games, huh?" Mavis narrowed her eyes. "You ain't a kid yourself, ya know."

"Hey whoa, whoa, was just trying to make some conversation?" Grant practically jumped away from her. "I-I'm just not much for waiting about in silence, eh?"

Mavis pursed her lips. "...I guess. Yeah, it was my daughter's name on the package. Opened it to make sure it was safe, then give it to her when she got home from school. Next thing I know I'm here. Guess I was doin' my job as a mom, right?"

"...d-definitely," Grant seized the one opening he'd been given. "You saved your daughter from this place, and you're even surviving out here. I'm sure she'll be bloody pr-"

Mavis started at a sudden burst of light on the horizon, "... that's the scouting party! They're in trouble!"

"H-how'd you know they're in trouble?" Grant frowned.

"Does it matter how?!" Mavis snapped. "Now c'mon, you helpin' or what?"

"R-right!" Grant hesitated. "...I'll catch you up!"

Mavis made some kind of grunt at him, and began jogging in the direction of the flash of light. Her fire bird gave Grant an equally disapproving stare, and then followed after her. Grant stumbled around, looking for something frantically. Eventually he gave an exasperated sigh, and dug his foot into the ground. Slowly, he carved an arrow and the letter 'P' into the soil. He took a moment to nod at it, and then chased after Mavis.

-.-.-.-.-.

There was a heavy, guttural roar as the Krookodile threw itself forwards. Its opponent found the agility to tumble itself out of the way.

"C'mon Cleo, get up now!" Aurelie cried. "Gotta be careful, ya hear?!"

Her Luxray gave her a short yowl, and electricity flared across its muscular body. Cleo tucked in low, and charged the Krookodile, its electric coating shorting out the moment it made contact.

"You're doing it wrong!" Max chastised her.

"Well wanna show me how to do it right, mister yankee doodle?" Aurelie was able to grin despite it all.

"Fiine..." Max groaned, and stepped forwards. "Charge me."

Aurelie nodded, and parroted to Cleo, who lit itself up in another aura of electricity.

"Receive it, Klang!" Max ordered. His Klang gave a whirr in response, and waded into Cleo's bubble of electricity. Suddenly its gears began spinning much faster, with arcs of lightning crackling away from its body.

"Right, now's your chance!" Max cried, and his Klang heaved its heavy body into the Krookodile. The creature loosed a gurgling roar as Klang's grinding gears tore into flesh and soft tissue. Thick teeth found a shoulder joint and seized it, with an audible crack as something was broken. Max gave Aurelie the wide eyed look, and she eventually got the hint.

"...oh, right! Cleo, here's your chance girl!"

Cleo responded with a friendly mewl, and pounced, sinking its teeth into the Krookodile's unguarded back. The thing barely flinched from fangs puncturing it's skin, but then there was another flare of electricity, which Cleo channeled through its teeth and into the Krookodile's body. Its eyes bulged, and smoke literally erupted from it as the electricity tore through its body.

A sudden explosion knocked both Cleo and Klang away, and the Krookodile swayed on its feet for a moment. But then, as if nothing had happened, it threatened with a growl, and lunged at Cleo, who barely managed to roll away in time.

"Geez, it just won't give up!" Max exclaimed. "When are those people supposed to be here exactly?!"

"Well I dunno! This is a big city!" Aurelie replied immediately. "Could be a few minutes, could be ages! Hang on a sec."

Krookodile thumped its remaining good arm into the ground where Cleo was a second ago, releasing a shockwave with it and knocking both humans and their Pokemon over in the meantime.

"Cover your eyes!" Aurelie yelled. "Okay Cleo, another Flash!"

Max threw an arm in front of his face just in time for Cleo to loose another horrific blast of light, engulfing everything within a few metres. The Krookodile screeched in obvious indignation, and staggered backwards, where Klang seized its chance and threw itself at the beast, knocking it over.

"That oughta do it!" Aurelie seemed a tad pleased with herself. "Okay, careful now eh? We don't wanna let it get back up!"

"Then maybe we should attack instead of telling each other to be care-" Max began, "...ful."

Krookodile took its opportunity, and dug itself underground in record time.

"Is... is that it?" Said Aurelie. "M-maybe it's escaping?"

"When it's got an advantage over both of us? Not likely." Max shot her down. "K-keep moving, Klang. See if we can confuse it."

With a whirr of acknowledgement, Klang sped up, and started darting around the plains at top speed. Every now and again it would screech to a halt, grind against the ground, and take off again.

"Ahh, I see...!" Aurelie smirked, and began stamping her feet. "C'mon Cleo, you heard the kid! Run around a tad!"

Cleo barked in response, and started bounding about all over the place. There was the occasional shake from underground - was it the Krookodile's doing? - but aside from it all looking pretty silly, it was accomplishing something, because it hadn't resurfaced yet.

Suddenly there was a high pitched whistling in the air, and Max looked overjoyed at the sight of a crimson flurry closing in on them. "H-hey, look!"

"Oo, that's our help!" Aurelie stopped stomping for a moment, pointing up to the bright red clump of feathers in the sky.

"That's our help?!" Max was suddenly outraged. "How's a bird gonna help us against this thing?! It doesn't even have a trainer!"

"Heyyy, it's better than no help isn't it?!" Aurelie puffed. All this stomping was murder on the calves. "More Pokemons, more better... right?! 'Sides, the trainer's on the way!"

"If you say so..." Max deadpanned. "Keep with the plan, Klang."

Klang whirred, and continued making noise and distractions above ground. It shook again as the Krookodile was clearly getting frustrated.

"...you know it's gonna attack any moment, right?" Max was, as always, the voice of pessimism. "Neither of us can handle a ground attack, and the bird won't do anything without its trainer here."

"Well then we better hope she gets here soon!" Aurelie was insufferably chipper. "Just keep up with the plan, and hopefully it'll - hey, there's a person!"

Thrusting an arm out with entirely too much energy, she pointed to a tall silhouette running towards them. She frowned - that wasn't the bird lady - as the very obvious guy closed in. Powerfully built with really long limbs, she didn't recognise him at all. Where were all these people coming from?

The man had caught them up in no time, and aside from resting against a wall for a moment, barely even seemed out of breath after running all that distance.

"...afternoon," he took in a deep breath. "Mavis is on her way. W-what's the problem?"

"Underground!" Aurelie squeaked. There's a Krook...odile? A-and it dug itself underground a little while ago! But it could attack any moment, and no one here likes Ground moves!"

"...gotcha," the man wiped sweat from his brow. "Well, I know a thing or two about crocs, eh?"

Both of the kids stopped what they were doing and just gave him weird looks. Even the bird visibly rolled its eyes.

"...guess that one didn't carry," he smirked. "Name's Grant. From Australia. Hence the crocs thing?"

"Ohhh...!" Aurelie suddenly lit up. "That makes sense now!"

"Eheh, yup," Grant rubbed the back of his neck. "A-alrighty. C'mon out Harry, let's see if we can flush it out eh?"

The crimson flash of a pokeball lit up the area for a split second, before a towering fighting-type burst from it. Both kids craned their necks at the seven or eight foot of pure bulk. It grunted once at them both as some means of greeting.

"Alright Harry, listen up," Grant explained to it. "There's a... what was it again? Krookodile?"

"Y-yeah."

"A Krookodile hiding underground somewhere. And we gotta dig 'im up. Understand?"

'Harry' nodded to its trainer, and Grant grinned back in response.

"Awesome," his tone remained calm and unchanging. "Wanna Force Palm the ground for me?"

With a grunt, Harry flexed its enormous left hand, and then thrust it downwards, cracking the floor beneath it and sending a shockwave outwards.

"...well don't just stand there, keep evading!" Max shook himself out of his trance.

"...hunh? O-oh gee, of course!" Aurelie started, and resumed her jumping about. Cleo the Luxray followed in its trainer's footsteps, while Klang continued making noise, and Harry carried on smacking the ground. With every palm thrust, it would listen, adjust its angle, and try again.

"Keep at it Harry, you're doing great." Grant encouraged. "So... both yanks?"

"Huh?" Aurelie took a moment to catch up. "...oh! No no, just MuhMuhMax here! I'm Aurelie, from Canada!"

"Ohh..." Grant recoiled. "Sorry there. Kinda hard to tell."

"Don't worry! You wouldn't be the first!" Aurelie smiled brightly. Her gaze did draw away however, and her smile followed after it.

Grant was as oblivious as ever, though. "Any moment that weasel's gonna pop, I just know it."

"...it's a crocodile." Max deadpanned.

"I know it's a croc, ya drongo..." Grant pinched his nose. "It was a joke?"

"Aren't jokes supposed to be funny?" Max stared blankly at him.

"Y'know, you're bloody serious for a seven year old." Grant deflated.

"I'm eleven and a half!" Max raged back immediately.

"...wait what? You're like four foot nothing?" Grant balked.

"I'm just short, that's all! What're you, like forty five?!"

"Like, half that! C'mon, I don't look that old?!"

"Well you're like twelve feet tall, so you must be really old! It's your own logic!"

"Guys guys! Calm down eh?" Aurelie flailed at them both. "Remember why we're here?"

"...true," Grant conceded. "Sorry mate. Didn't mean to upset you."

"I'm not your 'mate'." Max huffed.

"Bro, I'm Aussie. Everyone's 'mate'."

"Well not me! My name is Max! Use it!"

"You guyyys...!" Aurelie sighed. Suddenly, there was the splintering of rock as something enormous burst up out of the ground behind her, and even she couldn't hide her shock.

"Harry!" Grant called out. Hariyama sprung into action, and buried its enormous palm in the Krookodile's chest before it could attack. It recoiled from the impact, and fell back a couple of feet. Aurelie made a weird squeaking noise, and shuffled back behind Grant.

"Th-thanks...!"

"No worries," said Grant, "Alright Harry, let it make the first move, got it?"

"Rih!" Harry grunted back at him. The Krookodile hissed, and threw its battered body towards the small group. Harry grabbed the first limb it could, and swung the weight forward, sending the Krookodile back to the ground with a sickening crack.

"Okay, here's our chance Klang!" Max cried. "Gear Grind, while it's down!"

Klang released a whole bunch of computery noises, and lunged. Krookodile didn't have the time or strength to react. Various body parts were swallowed between Klang's gears before it suddenly shifted a gear, and began grinding away. The Krookodile released a roar of pain, but ultimately could do nothing against it. There was a shriek, followed by a plume of dark, spattering blood out one end, and there was an accompanying scream before the creature finally ceded its grasp on life, and burst into blue sparkles...

"Ho...ly," Grant eventually stammered. A couple of items clinked to the ground in Krookodile's place, which Max wasted no time gathering.

"Th-that was a bit much, bro."

"Who cares? It's dead isn't it?" Max gave no quarter. "Now you want one of these items or not?"

Grant span around to find a wide-eyed Aurelie huddling on the ground, and knelt down next to her.

"H-hey... you all good?"

"That was awful..." she whispered. "I-I've... I've seen these little guys get defeated before, but they usually just turn blue and d-disappear? What was with all the limb breaking and blood spewing on that one?!"

"I think Max doesn't know how to hold back," Grant stole a glance at the kid.

Max in return rolled his eyes, and pocketed the items. "Hey screw you guys! I'm keeping both of these, ya hear?"

"Can't you see we've got more important issues here?" Grant chided. "...you okay to stand? You're pale as."

"Oh, u-um..." Aurelie trembled. "Sure, g-gimme a sec."

"You know what?" Grant clapped his hands. "Special treat, 'cause I like ya."

"Oh, no no no, no no, you don't have to do that!" Aurelie flailed, as Grant hooked an arm behind her knees, "I'm really heav... oh."

As quickly as she could object, was she lifted from the ground. Eyes bulging, and somehow even paler than before a look somewhere between terrified and elated tore at the corner of her mouth.

"...y-you're really strong." She blushed.

"Oh nah, this is nothin'," Grant laughed it off. "See, I play rugby a bit, and I'm lifting blokes heavier than you all the time, and-"

"Well ain't this a sight?"

Grant felt his stomach twist as the voice of that Mavis lady cut into their moment like a knife through paper. The three of them flinched, and turned to find not only Mavis herself, but Priya and half a dozen of the usual villagers. Mavis had her arms folded, looking thoroughly displeased with the whole arrangement, while Priya and the rest of them just looked amused.

"Err... hi." Grant waved awkwardly. What else was there to do? "This one fell, so I figured I'd-"

"Be a big strong man and help her out?" Mavis death-stared him. "Nice. She don't need it, do ya kiddo?"

"I-it's... it's a little nice?" Aurelie mumbled. Mavis rolled her eyes.

"Guess I should probs let you down eh?" Said Grant, who set her back on her feet. Aurelie wobbled a little, but at least there was some colour back in her face.

"...so," Mavis' arms were folded tighter than ever. "Gonna tell us why we wasted our time comin' out here?"

"...to save them?" Grant said.

"Wasn't talking to you, I was askin' princess bluehair over there." Mavis shut him down.

"Awha?" Aurelie stammered. "W-Well umm... we're kinda not sure, are we M-M-Max?!"

"Why're you asking me?" Max deadpanned.

"B-because you were there, a-and you saw it too, a-and-"

"Alright, cool it!" Mavis groaned. "One of you, just answer. Did you find out anything worthwhile? Or did we waste a day trusting you both?"

"W-well..." Aurelie gulped.

Mavis buried her face in one hand. "...I'll just ask Abi and Franz to go when they get b-"

"Darkrai!"

* * *

Author's note:

Hey everyone. Sorry this update took a while. I've been busy getting distracted with other real life crap. But here's an update. Yayyy...

I'm playing around with the mechanics a wee bit, and im tempted to add in a few megas of my own if I get creative enough. So yeah, thoughts on that if you've got a moment?

Thanks for reading. Over and out.


	20. Dance Macabre

**Chapter Twenty: Dance Macabre**

"Darkrai?"

"Y-yeah."

"...I don't know that one. What's a Darkrai?" Mavis finally admitted.

"Well uhh..." Aurelie dragged a foot across the gravel. "It's... kinda hard to explain? Like, it's supposed to give people nightmares, and then steal their essence or something, putting them in eternal sleep?"

"Uh huh," Mavis nodded. "So it's powerful?"

"Y-yep. It's what they call a 'legendary' pokemon because they're only rumoured to exist?" Said Aurelie.

"Yet you definitely saw one?" Mavis' voice lowered a notch.

"Oh yeah, wouldn't forget one of those. And MuhMuhMax can back me up, can'tcha bud... where'd he go?"

Aurelie span around, twice, three times, and looked under her arm for good measure. "Oh gee, we need to strap a bell on him or something. He just disappeared!"

"Well, he did get some stuff from that last battle," Grant shrugged. "Maybe he's gone to find a shop and sell it? Either way, sounds like we've gotta battle a legend, right? And logic says there'll be another one where Abi and... Franz? Went?"

"Hmm..." Mavis put a hand to her chin. "If that's the case, maybe we should go to them. They could be in trouble if these 'legends' are as strong as you kids say they are."

"B-but," Grant subjected himself to a disapproving glare from Mavis. "Didn't you two come back safe? Why'd a legend just let you go?"

"See, that's the weird thing eh?" Aurelie scratched her head. "Darkrai was definitely there, but it like, wasn't moving or anything. So I was thinking we maybe gotta activate it?"

"Ugh," a collective groan rippled throughout the small crowd of people.

"Another thing to do?" Grant massaged his forehead. "Any clue what that could be?"

"W-well uhh..." Aurelie's shoulders were ever so slowly rising into a shrug. "M-maybe we'll just have to wait and see what those other two people say when they get ba-"

"Ah, h-hello?" A hand burst up out of the crowd and flailed at them. People parted, and Camila of all people stood there, looking proud.

"Is maybe Pokémon especiale? Remember senor? La pato luna... how you say?"

"...moon duck?" Mavis frowned. "That another one of those legendary ones? What's it in English?"

There was a distinctive clamouring as people muttered amongst themselves. Between a language barrier and a sheer lack of knowledge, confusion was stirring up like a hive of angering bees.

Then suddenly,

"Cresselia!"

Several people spun around to see Franz and Abi. One looking victorious, one ready to collapse.

"Oh! Is same in Spanish!" Camila beamed.

"All zis running," Franz puffed. "It's too much!"

"Cress...elia?" Mavis didn't look any less confused. "That still don't help. What's one of those?"

"Can we... explain later?" Franz raised a weary hand. "We have travelled far, with no food!"

Abi smirked down at him, and rolled her eyes. "You just finished eating a bar of chocolate, chommie."

"...wery little food." Franz wept.

"Alright, alright," Mavis pinched at her nose. "You men only ever think with your stomachs, huh? Fine, we'll get some lunch, pool our resources, yada yada. I'm sure you kids all got introductions to do anyway."

—

"S-so you found Darkrai? And it did not move?" Franz happily gorged on something greasy as he and Aurelie shared information.

"Uh huh," Aurelie nodded. "It was just stood there, like a statue! Maybe we gotta unlock something else?"

It was the most useless Grant had felt in a while. He was a 'guest' in someone else's town, with no useful information, no presence compared to that Mavis lady, who captained these kids like some kind of platoon, and even Camila had overshadowed him by supplying a mountain of what she called 'tappers'.

Grant would've just called it snacks. There was so much variety, it was about the only group name he could think of. Did she just carry all this stuff around with her? He could vaguely recall that she worked in a restaurant, but actively preparing several kinds of food with minimal notice?

He couldn't hide how impressed he was. It must've all cost a fortune, yet she was more than happy to share it with relative, even complete strangers it seemed.

Of course Anibal and Pedro were there with her, like her ubiquitous shadows, along with Priya, remaining mostly unnoticed in the huddle, and some blonde girl from their village he barely recognised. A weird, technicolour butterfly floated about above her, seeming to get on quite well with Franz's creepy moth thing. Made sense, Grant supposed with a shrug.

There were a few absentees he couldn't help but note, however. Shemmy not being there was in no way a surprise - he probably had other things to do. The same likely applied for Ivan, who was on his own most of the time. But he had to question one;

"H-hey Priya," he crouched down beside her. She immediately flinched upon being addressed. "Where's Alex? I don't see her here?"

"O-oh, she thought she would be better off staying at home." Priya explained, frowning at some weird colourful food that Camila had just pushed on her. "She didn't want to leave her son alone, and I am still not sure if Natu can take three people at once."

"Ahh, makes sense," Grant nodded. "He either woulda been home alone for who knows how long, or stuck up here with a buncha strangers. Good call."

"Mhmm!" Priya gave another bright smile. Meanwhile it seemed like Mavis had gotten bored of all the festivities and socialising. With an exceptionally loud clearing of her throat, she stood up.

"Alright kids, lissen up!" She projected her voice like a high school teacher. Her bird thing stood to attention on her shoulder, and Grant frowned. Since when was it purple? Last thing he knew it was red.

"I'm glad you've all gotten to know each other, 'cause you're gonna be relying on each other." Mavis continued. "Thanks to the brave efforts of several of you, we now have two... legendary... es, to fight."

She took in another breath.

"One of them is called Cresselia. It is a psychic type according to recon,"

Someone in the audience chuckled to themselves.

"...and it is a very defensive threat! So we want strategy and longevity! The other one is called Darkrai! It is a dark type - surprise surprise - and attacks more offensively! So we want heavy hitters and tanks to take it out quickly! So decide amongst yourselves which one you're fighting, however I'm taking butterfly girl!"

She thrust a stubby finger in the direction of that blonde girl, who predictably flinched.

"M-moi?"

"Hmm, no English? Makes things... interesting." Mavis scratched her head.

"L-little bit... English." The blonde girl managed a smile. She and her colourful butterfly thing quivered over to where Mavis was, looking entirely awkward about the whole situation.

"Well uhh..." Grant frowned. "That Cresselia thing's a Psychic type, and Harry doesn't do so well against those. So I'll take Darkrai?"

Mavis nodded. "Fair enough. You'll need one of these two to lead te way though. Abi, Franz, decide amongst yourselves huh?"

"So zat is why..." Franz looked between Abi and Mavis. He curled a fist, and cleared his throat. "Decide ze fair way, Abi?"

Grant literally felt his spirits drop as Abi's fist met Franz's. Was he that horrible to be around?

"Rock, paper, scissors!" The two chanted,

"Scheißen!"

Franz sighed, ran fingers through his greasy hair, and toddled over to where Grant was standing. "It looks like I'm wiz you."

"S-sorry," Grant felt a chuckle escape him. Was it mirth, or self pity? He wasn't even sure any more.

"Oh no no, is not your fault!" Franz insisted. "We just have... a strong strategy, is all."

One by one, the gaggle of trainers eventually sorted themselves out into two groups, and immediately Grant felt isolated. Not only was 'his' group half the size of the other one, but he barely recognised anyone from it.

It did make sense though, sort of. Pedro with his Ralts had no chance against a Darkrai, while he, Camila and Anibal were practically inseparable. Mavis, Abi and that blonde girl - Angelique? Was that her name? - apparently had some strategy involving butterflies, and Priya's Natu probably wouldn't last against a dark type either. So that left the little kid Max, who disappeared the moment he found drops, and Aurelie, who must've just been more comfortable fighting a Cresselia or something. Her Luxray looked like a heavy hitter, so it kinda made sense.

"A-are you sure these teams are fair? We don't need a couple more in this one?" Grant asked.

"What, worried you can't handle it?" Mavis scoffed.

"N-no, it's not that, it's just-"

"-just make sure everyone gets back safe." Mavis cut him off. "If they need activating or whatever, we'll figure that out as we go. Right, any questions before we move out?"

Several people looked ready to raise a hand and ask something. Yet no one did.

"...right. Good luck everyone. Go for the gold!"

She shot one last sharp look around the camp, and Grant could literally feel people shudder under her gaze. After some awkward mumbling, the two mismatched groups went their separate ways. Grant couldn't help but notice the weird, oppressive ambience that had enveloped the ten or so of them. Was this Mavis lady always that intense? Or did they too think the 'team' of near strangers was too small?

He shook his head, and pushed it to the back of his mind. The sun was dipping below the horizon already - where had the day gone? - and this huge city was dark at the best of times, so he really needed to focus on what was ahead of him. Franz summoned his weird moth thing - Masquerain, that was it! - and it lit the path ahead of them, which made things a little more bearable. Someone else in the group had cottoned on, and brought out some weird, zigzag patterned zebra?

Grant sighed. There were just so many things about this world he didn't understand any more. With a squint, he could just about make out some fading glimmers of what must've been the other party, heading off into the distance.

For hours they travelled, it seemed. Aside from the occasional ambush, there was really nothing to entertain as towering apartment blocks slowly melted away into rugged mountain, with the occasional patch of grass bursting between the rocks. Night had well and truly fallen by the time Franz collapsed against a rock wall, heaving.

"We... are almost there." He panted. "Just a little more to go."

"But what about that activating thing?" Grant asked. "Weren't you saying something about it-"

But a sudden surge of energy interrupted. Grant and a few others rounded the corner to inspect, only to find a dark, shrouded Pokémon surrounded by an aura of greenish energy.

"...huh," Grant took a step back. "I take it it's not always glowing?"

—

"Wait, why's it active now?" Aurelie rubbed her eyes and frowned, just to make sure. But sure enough, the Cresselia they'd spent the last few hours tracking down was definitely surrounded by a gentle blue energy.

"M-maybe because it's nighttime?" She shrugged.

"Who cares why." Mavis deadpanned. "Saves us the trouble of having to find out how. Now, everyone remember what they're doing?"

A murmur rifled through their group, followed by a crescendo of crimson flashes as several Pokémon were released at once.

Cresselia did not move. Rather, it just stared towards them. The very air seemed thick with tension. Suddenly the place brightened up a little, with a collection of green, holographic bars appearing in the air.

"Are those... health bars?" Asked Anibal. "W-why do we have them?"

"To let us know how much health they have." Mavis rolled her eyes. "C'mon, this is bas-"

"No no, why do WE have them?" Anibal reiterated, and pointed upwards. "Look."

Indeed, it wasn't just their Pokemon that had health bars. Each person had one, too. Cresselia had five of them.

"...huh." Mavis was for once at a loss for words. "Well that's ominous."

"Ugh. Just waitin' around isn't gonna get us anywhere!" Aurelie had lost patience already. "Just keep our distance and we'll be fine huh?! Cleo, get in there with your Spark attack!"

Cleo the Luxray snorted in response, and made the first charge. Body coated in a film of electricity, it crashed into Cresselia, knocking it back a few inches but showing no signs of damage. Cleo was soon joined on the other side by a Crawdaunt of all things, which smacked the Cresselia in the side of the face with an enormous pincer. The two attacks knocked about a quarter away from its first HP bar.

The Cresselia responded by loosing a wave of bright pink energy. Crawdaunt didn't even flinch, but Cleo and several others were bowled over from the impact of it.

"Well, can't just stand here!" Mavis cried. "Girls, set me up!"

"Gotcha," Abi nodded, and instructed her Lilligant. "Lief, time for a Quiver Dance!"

The mass of petals and leaves giggled at its trainer in response, and span around three times. A soft pink energy emanated from it, condensing and whooshing outwards. But then Mavis' Oricorio watched and copied Lilligant's dance, with the same effect. Angelique cottoned on, and had her Vivillon do the same.

Which Oricorio copied again.

—

Meanwhile, Grant's Hariyama was giving Darkrai a hard time. The dark shadowy creature was squashed amidst Hariyama's bulk, before being thrown to the ground in a massive suplex.

"That's it Harry!" Grant cheered it on. "It's a range attacker, so make sure you stay close as, alright?! Get right in that personal space!"

"Hah!" Harry grunted, and thrust it's giant hand into Darkrai's empty mass. The creature released a weird, echoing noise that must've been whatever pain was to this thing. Meanwhile Franz's Masquerain assaulted it with a loud buzzing noise, and someone else's Staraptor dug talons into it. The poor creature was barely getting chance to move, forget counter-attack. Hariyama grappled the thing in another chokehold of sorts, squashing the vitality out of it. With one arm, Harry slammed the Darkrai into the ground, causing tremors and giving someone's Machoke the perfect opportunity to bury its fist into the creature. A dull echo escaped Darkrai, followed by a wave of dark something or other.

—

Meanwhile the pressure was on the other foot with Cresselia. It had just knocked away Aurelie's Cleo with a psychic attack, then effortlessly avoided a Night Shade from Priya's Natu. With a deep breath it countered, emitting some weird rainbow coloured beam and striking Camila's Gabite with it at point blank range. There was a shriek as the Gabite was blasted backward, smashing into a wall and exploding into blue sparkles.

"Ai!?" She gasped. "Gabite, no!"

Her fingers tugged through her bushy hair. "La pincha pato...!" She punched Anibal in the chest, who'd made the mistake of trying to comfort her. But the pair of them had to dive out of the way as a blast of psychic energy missed by inches.

Anibal held her by the shoulders, looked her in the eyes. "Bien?!"

Camila glanced to the side, and then down at her feet. Slowly she shook her head, as tears rolled down her cheeks. He gave her a quick hug, and then returned his attention to the Cresselia, which had just smoothly evaded a Crawdaunt's crushing Crab Hammer. It loosed an enormous cloud of mist, obscuring itself from sight. At its trainer's command, Anibal's Floatzel shot straight through the mist with an Aqua Jet, knocking into Cresselia, where it took a blast of Psychic as punishment. But Cleo the Luxray was through soon afterwards, followed by several others, dog piling onto Cresselia to stop it from escaping.

Meanwhile Mavis, Abi and Angelique were still setting up. They had recruited a young man with an Oranguru as well, only making the combo all the more potent. With every Quiver Dance Abi's Lilligant or Angelique's Vivillon would use, Mavis' Oricorio would copy it, and then the Oranguru would Instruct one of the Quiver Dancers to repeat, which Oricorio would again copy. Eventually there was enough energy between the four of them that they were practically radiating heat.

"...I think we're ready," Mavis nodded to her 'helpers'. "Alright Cori, hit it with your Revelation Dance!"

Her Oricorio trilled out a response, and fluttered its wings. A dark, purplish energy rose from its body, culminating together and pulsing towards the Cresselia, which was too busy dealing with Floatzel and Luxray to avoid it. There was an empty thud as the energy absorbed into Cresselia, visibly damaging it for the first time since the battle had begun. Vivillon and Lilligant followed in Oricorio's example, launching their own super powered attacks at Cresselia. Vivillon trapped it inside a tight, spiralling Hurricane while Lilligant assaulted it with blasts of bright pink petals. Every attempt it could make at attacking with Psychic was cancelled out by Oranguru.

"Okay, one more time Cori!" Mavis cried, and her Oricorio repeated its Revelation Dance. Again, Cresselia was assaulted by the powerful, ghostly energy. The impact knocked enormous chunks out of its final HP bar, into the deep red. Cresselia's eyes glowed blue, and suddenly the swirling Hurricane around it dissipated. A barrier was erected, repelling all attacks, and Cresselia crooned out a deep, mournful song. The bright blue glow engulfed it entirely to form a perfect sphere, and then suddenly, it burst. A little white sparkle of light rose from the top of it, and all manner of items fell from the bottom, crashing to the ground. A fanfare sounded, with a brilliant golden banner floating above them that said 'Congratulations!'.

"What... the?" Mavis frowned at it. "B-but didn't it have some health left? Where'd it go?"

"Maybe that's how it works here?" Aurelie shrugged. "It is our first one after all."

The grounds fell silent with tension. All except one, anyway.

"...Cori?" Mavis finally noticed her Oricorio. "W-what're you doing...?"

Her Oricorio was still dancing. Fluttering its wings about like Japanese fans, the little purple bird swayed left, and then right, and then span around on the spot. With a trill, Oricorio released a bright blue energy, and disappeared.

"Gah?!" Mavis gasped, as a little white sparkle rose from where her Oricorio stood moments ago. "Wh-wh-what just happened?!"

The sparkle rose up into the air, and then spread out, glittering down upon the crowds like snow.

"I-I think..." Aurelie said. "I think that was Lunar Dance?"

"And why'd none of you tell me that was gonna happen?!" She seized handfuls of dirt on the ground. "My... my little Cori, she's gone! None of you thought to warn me?!"

"I... didn't know, sorry." Aurelie mumbled. Abi knelt down, and patted Mavis on the shoulder, who flinched from the contact.

"Guess your mom's not as good at this as she thought, eh?" She spoke to the ground.

—

Darkrai had just been slammed into the ground for the seventh or eighth time by Hariyama, taking its last HP bar into the orange. More pummelling attacks had knocked it left and right, with no real chances for it to actually attack.

"Alright, good work!" Grant cried, as Franz's Masquerain hit it with another Bug Buzz. "Just a little longer, and-"

But then, a glowing ray of light descended from the skies above, engulfing Darkrai. A mass of energy exploded from within, and suddenly the creature was full of vitality again. With a blast of dark energy, it knocked away Hariyama, who took Grant with it, then smacked Masquerain to the ground with a Feint Attack. Before anything could close the gap on it again, it took its chance. Darkness billowed from the creature like a spectral volcano, W shrouding the area. When the darkness cleared, everything surrounding it, person and Pokemon alike, was asleep.

Darkrai did not attack immediately. Instead it expanded, and then contracted, almost like it were taking a deep breath. Tiny blue crystals were evaporating from all of the sleeping people and Pokemon, which were then absorbed into Darkrai's endless swathes of black. It then expanding again, creating a vacuum effect of sorts and sucking the blue crystals towards it at a faster pace. People and Pokemon alike were shivering, flinching, as the crystals were drained from them.

Then, like glass, the first of them shattered into nothing. Others followed, disintegrating into nothingness an absorbed into Darkrai. The creature contracted again, and then vanished like a shadow.


End file.
